International Day of Friendship
Outside of our family, friends are so important in life. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, after our safety needs, our sense of belonging and friendships are next. Since March 2019, the beginning of the Covid 19 pandemic when the world literally went into lockdown, that facet of Maslow was literally taken away from us. We were unable to connect with friends in person. Yes, we thought of new ways of connecting – who had heard of Zoom or Google Meet before the pandemic? I had not!
The social and emotional impact of losing that vital connection with our friends, was, to me, significant. Spending all day and everyday tucked away with your family in your home can be stressful, however harmonious our relationships are. Friends are that component in our lives where we can connect differently than perhaps, we can with our loved ones. This July, on 30th, it is International Friendship Day. The roots of this day go back to the end of World War One – all the way back to 1919. Different countries celebrate this important day on different days, but here in the US, we celebrate it on July 30th. Even the United Nations designated this as an official day back in 2011.
So why should we celebrate International Day of Friendship? Well, aside from the pandemic when we were unable to be with our friends as much as we are now, friendships can mean so much to our own mental and physical well-being. Hopefully we all have friends who we know are ‘there for us, no matter what.’ They are not afraid to call us out on our failings, they will show up in the middle of the night, no matter what, when you have an emergency or a sad family situation, and they give us that much needed boost when we need it. Sometimes, just sitting with us and not saying anything is what a great friend will do.
Friendships mean so many different things to different people. Some friends, who we have known for years but maybe have been out of touch due to distance, will remain our best friends for life. I know in my own life I have friends whom I have known since I was at school and in my early teens (I am in my 50’s now) who I would fly to the UK at the drop of a hat for if they needed me. I know they would do the same for me. Some of my friends I have not seen for a while, yet they are never far from my thoughts. Although we stay in touch by Facetime, emails and the odd text, nothing compares to seeing them in person.
In doing a little research for this blog, I found some statistics that are interesting:
22% – the percentage of people who live longer if they have a close friendship network.
2 – the average number of best friends an adult has.
9 months – the age at which babies start recognizing friendships.
36% – the percentage of people who quit a habit if their friends quit it too.
We can see how friendships are important! So, as we move toward July 30th, what are some of the things we can do to celebrate our friendships? Here are some ideas that I have had:
Meet a friend for dinner, lunch, or a drink. Meet up on July 30th. As well as supporting your local restaurant or ‘watering hole’, you can meet your friends outside and enjoy a summer event.
Write a letter or greeting card. In today’s electronic society, we text, email and connect so much via social media. How about putting pen to paper and writing a greeting card or a letter, expressing what your friend means to you. The power of the pen is enormous and to receive a handwritten note nowadays via ‘snail mail’ is powerful.
Be a better friend. Perhaps you have not seen a friend or been in contact for a while. How about that random phone call checking in? Pop round to their house for a cup of tea? Just say, ‘hi.’
Make new friends. Are you interested in widening your circle of friends? Join a new interest group or use it as an opportunity to volunteer with an organization. If you find something you really enjoy volunteering with, you could make some lifelong friends.
Share a photo collage of you and a friend on social media. This is a great way to reminisce about times gone by.
Send a surprise gift to a friend. It doesn’t have to be expensive, just heartfelt and thought through.
Use International Friendship Day as a way of starting a new tradition with a friend. Maybe every July 30th you will do something every year. Maybe it is meeting and opening a bottle of wine, going for a walk, seeing a movie etc. Something simple, again meaningful, and heartfelt.
Ultimately, the list is endless and only limited by your imagination. I have added a few ideas to get your creative juices flowing but, in the end, it is about making, remembering, and keeping connections. People come and go in our lives, but like our family, our closest friends are there forever. Treasure, nurture and grow that. For those of you in education, always remember, “Maslow Before Bloom.”