"You see, most of our friendships can be incredibly self-serving or self-affirming. Typically we surround ourselves with friends who reflect back to us a mirror of our self, the false center that is perpetuated by the kinds of circles we insulate ourselves in. Friendships are one of life’s greatest gifts, but they take real work and require quite a bit of effort if we want them to be authentic...
True friends are the people in your life who aren’t surprised by your accomplishments or disappointed by your tragic failures. Your true friends know you enough to manage their expectations around the sense that we’re not as bad as our worst moments and often worse than our best... learning to love each other well, accepting the best and worst of each other, focusing on our relationships as they are rather than what we think they should be, helps us stay faithful to our friendships, relationships, and communities."
Christopher Heuertz, Unexpected Gifts
