Monday, April 25, 2011

The ABC's of A Good Friend... "U"

(Is there any friendship more unselfish than the one you have with your pet?)

Today is day 21 of Arlee Bird's A-Z Challenge! Since I write for younger children and we're doing the ABC's, I thought I'd do The ABC's of A Good Friend (and throw in a few random pictures, because I have a bit of a camera habit).
~U~
I hit on this before when we were talking about being giving or generous, but being unselfish really shows the quality of a person's character.  Being around a person who needs to be the center of attention can wear you out.  Not to mention it gets a bit boring.  When a friend is going through a hard time, often they just need someone to listen to them.  They don't need to hear about when you had a hard time too.  Sometimes they do, but first they need to be heard.  It gets tiresome if you and a friend get in a pattern of you always doing favors for them, but they never offer to do or are able to do a favor in return. It feels very lopsided.  I'm not saying you can't ask your friends for help...I'm just saying you have to be willing to help in return.  An unselfish friend is a fair friend.  The two of you are equal partners in the friendship.  Imagine if you gave your friend a wonderful Christmas (or whatever holiday is special to you) present every year and that friend never acknowledge that you gave her or him a gift, let alone bothered to even send you a card.  However, they expected you to give one to them...it seems like eventually you would grow to resent that friendship or lack thereof.  Am I right?  You have to be unselfish and vested in your friends so that they can be unselfish and vested in you.
 
Do you have any other "U" words for me?  This was a hard one!

20 comments:

  1. U was a hard letter...in fact...I think the rest of the week may pose problems.

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  2. I think "understanding" goes along with unselfish. I really appreciate it when my friends are understanding when I fall off the edge of the Earth, only to sheepishly reappear after I've finished a wip or something.

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  3. Wow, beyond understanding and unselfish, I've got nothing. My brain is apparently still asleep (it's only 5:39 am!).

    Can't wait to see what you come up with for X, Y, Z. ;)

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  4. Having equality in friendships is so important. Another reason why I shed a few friendships along the way. I found I was always there to listen to them, acknowledge their suffering and be there whenever they needed a shoulder to cry on and yet when I needed them they would be very dismissive of my pain. So yay to mutual unselfishness!

    Erm... urbane? I think! Take care
    x

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  5. I totally agree with the unique relationship an owner and his/her pet has. My dogs always greet me with a tail wag when I get home. They lick tears off my kids' cheeks. And snuggle with all five of us. I adore them!

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  6. "U" is a hard letter ~ but unselfish is a very good word. And you are right, a 'one sided' friendship is not a healthy one. But Unconditional love from a pet ~ very healthy! :)

    Happy Monday Sharon!
    xo Catherine

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  7. Glad I'm not doing this A to Z anymore, the one U that came to mind was undertaker, I used to take funerals when I was younger, so might have blogged about that!

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  8. Yes, U is a hard one when it comes to relating to friendship.
    Unique: that’s all I got.

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  9. Unselfishness is so important. In our society these days, it seems selfishness is more and more common.

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  10. A U word..thinking...thinking...No nothing.

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  11. Hello Sharon,
    How are 'U'? :) Right then, another 'U' for 'U'.
    U is a very easy letter. And how about the non-judgemental attribute in a friend of being 'Unbiased'?

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  12. Unselfish is very important. How about: U are almost done. Awesome that you have stuck with this.

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  13. yes...U is difficult. I like the two given here and would add ubiquitous....friends are everywhere and the best ones are always available! Okay, maybe it was a stretch but it's a U word :)

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  14. If I had a pencil I'd draw a blank! I will just go with your terrific U words!!!

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  15. I'm so burnt out when it comes to the alphabet, I'm going to just go with unselfish being the best U word when it comes to good friends :-) I don't think I'm a selfish person, but I think I need to work on this in some of my friendships because I forget everyone's birthdays and forget to send cards and gifts even when people are so generous to me for special occasions. I think I will have to make this a personal goal.

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  16. Hi Sharon, thanks for your comment. No I haven't written anything NF. This A-Z has taken over my life. Oh isn't Joe just wonderful. I am totally inlove with the way he writes and his photography. When he gets a book published I will be the first to buy it! haha :)

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  17. I totally agree with that word "unselfish." I also associate with people who are understanding.

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  18. I like unselfish. Very true!

    And Understanding.

    This is a hard challenge! I'm proud of you for sticking with it! (What are you going to do for X?!) :)

    Amy

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  19. Unsinkable.

    I don't care for faux Pollyanna sunshine, but I do like people who keep high spirits, and in so doing, buoy the spirits of those around them.

    A friend like that is worth his or her weight in gold.

    Which would make them sink. So perhaps I need to find another currency...

    Best,
    Joe
    v: voices from the past

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