Friendships and relationships with other people are essential parts of life, and high school is a great time to build them. Deciding whether or not to want two true friends or 20 fake friends is a decision with which many high school students struggle. The choice of wanting a friendship or just an acquaintance is something to be navigated through high school, but always be sure to choose friendship.  

Friendships and relationships with other people are essential parts of life, and high school is a great time to build them. Well, establishing relationships in high school may seem easy, making the conscious decision of preferring quality over quantity in friendships is both difficult and important.

Teens who choose to have quantity over quality of friendships have obviously never experienced a true friendship. Quantity is for the popularity chase. 

The word ‘friends’ is typically defined by teens as someone they spend time talking and hanging out with. The definition of friend is “a person one knows and with whom one has a bond of mutual affection” according  to the Oxford dictionary. 

However, finding someone who is considered to be a true friend opens the door to understanding large friend groups are not necessarily ideal. When focusing on the word friend it discusses one individual, however talking about a friend group the word acquaintance comes to mind.  As someone who has experienced high school friendships, learning who is considered a true friend is a difficult road to explore. 

Though large groups may seem more fun and appealing to the expectations of having fun in high school with big groups at parties. That is truly a misconception, the stress and drama that goes on behind closed doors in large friend groups is truly remarkable. Many large friend groups in high school do not treat each other like a friend but rather an acquaintance. 

From the time spent in high school, being able to observe through the course of high school, there is always one common thing in large friend groups. Dishonesty. Many large friend groups spend much of their time away from one another talking down on their so-called “friends”. 

There are many people who have walked out of high school with one true friend. Looking into the future after high school and some realize that social status and popularity fades after high school. 

Having a small group of two or three caring and compassionate friends is worth 100 friends. Though there may be fewer people, the love, kindness, and attention smaller groups receive is greatly better in a small group. 

High school can be stressful and unbearable, but being able to have someone to talk to who is there  is the best kind of friendship. Truly getting to know someone for who they are is wonderful within itself. Being able to know someone for who they are and form a connection with them is truly rewarding.

Focusing on a singular person or two is important and is easier said and done. Especially when there is no need to have to focus on big groups with drama, fights, and different priorities who are consumed on what their social status looks like. 

Teenagers are ever changing and going through different stages in life, but having a small group of caring, true friends, and feeling supported and heard is a much bigger priority than where you land on the social ladder. Someone who wants to be happy would know to choose a small group of people who care.