Friendship week!

[rocklobster]

What do you know, it's National Friendship week!

[Okami]

It is also National Suicide Prevention Week.

[Atria35]

In which case, let's be friends to those in need and prevent suicide!

[Nate]

Sweet! Now all I need to do is find these "friend" things and I'll be set!

[Yamamaya]

Rocklobster if you do a friendship speech, I am going to have to kill you.

[Furen]

Friendship... Such a strange term

Is it a toy? I want one!!!

[Fish and Chips]

Tune up that piano boys.

It's time for some Tom Lehrer.

[Rusty Claymore]

Yay for boats where you stick people!

[Dante]

Sweet! Now all I need to do is find these "friend" things and I'll be set!

>_> I would hang out with you. It's a shame you don't live in Arizona, you could join (or oppose) my plans to save the world! Of course, you might not want to hang out with me. You know, that's possible too.

_________________________

Ultimately I would say that if this was national friendship week, we should focus on the national friendship crisis. I don't believe the internet has caused a crisis in friendships, but stands as an underground against the "friends for business or networking" front -- what turned a lot of genuine people away from the word "friend". If it was all about networking and having one more chain to the job market, it wasn't worth chasing after. Those of us with RL friends are getting thin and few. Often times, we are limited to only one close companion whom we either choose to abuse (and quickly loose) or ignore (to avoid indulging our need for interpersonal companionship).

A lack of companionship bereaves us of a lack of value, because the only thing worth acquiring in this world is the companionship and happiness in those we can care about.

Besides this, we are going about the whole "friend" thing entirely wrong... we often feel we have to be way to plastic and professional. Honestly, we invest huge amounts of effort to get other people to like us, but miss the target by a million miles. Fast shiny cars, giant houses, massive academic and business awards... forget 'em! They only isolate us more by causing jealousy in others. Commercials and the media, which we observe and hence base our lives off more and more as we get older, say that these are the things that buy friendships. But our gut instinct and the myths of our childhood, tell us that all we need to do to get a friend, is be a friend. Don't worry if your friends are professional, worry that your friends are themselves.

Ultimately, I have to do something to change this. I have completely failed in this aspect of life. I love my friends on the internet, I want to expand our friendships however I can, but I have to have real life interaction with other human beings and it is time I start taking back ground from the suits. I have to, because its' the only way to save the world. <_< I'm currently at stage one.

Pascal's 3 steps to saving the world

1. Save yourself. We are often taught that the battle for our souls is a done deal, so we take it for granted how the world suggests that we compromise ourselves (and I'm talking about WAY more then sin here). This is the most difficult battle to face. Be who you *REALLY* are, independent of what the world thinks, or lose yourself to their whims. After all, if the person you "are" were to be saved and not the person that is "really you", would you exist for an eternity in heaven, or would someone else? In fact, have you EVER existed? Honestly, it can be a really scary thought if you give it some time - but one I believe we should honestly consider. Am I living my life as me? Or am I being someone else to satisfy social norms and acceptable standards? Have I spiritually let myself die because others have convinced me that I will die physically if I tried to spiritually live as I was created and naturally are?

Ultimate Goal: Be willing to burn and fry any opportunity that comes my way if following that path will compromise who I am. (e.g. if it's were REALLY ME, then be willing to go to job interviews in a bathing suit and a party hat until someone was willing to accept me for who I was)

2. Find and save those you cherish. Find and nurture other people using in-roads of common likes, mutual affirmation of each others value and any means possible to build up affinity between one another. Build upon one anothers value and their values, encouraging them to be authentic and who they are without judgement and with a deep sense of appreciation so that you and the rest of your friends can become "sure shelter" for one another. After all, they're baring a portion of their soul to you, put down the arrows before you really hurt someone, they're armor is off -- heal the wounds beneath and nurture them with the warmth of your love. "Sure shelter" is what we should desire to become and what we should desire to find for ourselves and one another. It's description is given below [1],

"The sure shelter." The title comes from a passage in one of the apocryphal books of the Old Testament. "A faithful friend is a sure shelter; whoever finds one has found a rare treasure" (Ecclesiasticus, 6:14). At this stage friendship is perceived as a deep and lasting relationship of trust, fidelity and unconditional acceptance. As a highly gifted 12 year old described it: "A real friend is a place you go when you need to take off the masks. You can say what you want to your friend because you know that your friend will really listen and even if he doesn't like what you say, he will still like you. You can take off your camouflage with a real friend and still feel safe."

This is the key point. Its everything. Do stage 2 and I believe that you can find a means together to complete stage 3 (Actually I'd venture to say you can do whatever your hearts desire). If you can save those you cherish, you are as valuable as you ever need to be. If you can be one anothers defense and coping mechanism against the slings and arrows of the world, exactly as who you are, the masses of mankind will be helpless against your dreams. Every person needs this to survive, I've decided it deserves to stand next to food, water, clothing, "sure shelter". You, me and our worst enemies alike.

Ultimate Goal: Become and build friendships that are the foundation of every aspect of my future life. Friends who I intertwine my life with and follow to calamity and fortune and view both the same because our value will be placed in one another. Everything else is just our story, and if we are who we are, we're probably not power players in the RP of life, and that's OK. <-- Now that's a tall order.

3. Save the land beneath your feat. If you have the previous two and have built your values, understanding and shelter in one another to great depths, all you have to do to save the world is save the land beneath you feet. There is no need to quell oil spills millions [EDIT: Thousands ^_^] of miles away, defeat dragons in China or defeat the Mob, you simply need to save the land beneath your feat. Because only this stretch of Eden you make for one another matters and not the land east of Eden. Toss out the newspaper, smash the newsman and his television and realize that you've saved the world. How you do this part, what "saving the world" even means and what becomes of your group of companions after this... well that's the imagination in the adventure... and it's also entirely up to you... well you and those who would stand by your side till the end of time.

Ultimate Goal: Save the world.

Accidental betrayal, failure and other bumps in the road apply. But ultimately, I believe the path to save the world and save our friends, starts from within, by saving ourselves.

That stated, Yamamaya can now kill me for making a "friendship speech" of sorts,
-Pascal

[1] http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/Gross_PlayPartnerOrSureShelter.shtml

[Rusty Claymore]

Sweet! Now all I need to do is find these "friend" things and I'll be set!

Wait, so everyone here doesn't count? o.O Well, I guess it is hard to have coffee over the internet...

So... when is the week that all the Loners can get together?

[Furen]

THIS WEEK Mo!

[acgifford]

Oh really?! That is awesome!

[Juliannesan]

Yay for Friendship and Suicide prevention!

[Nate]

Wait, so everyone here doesn't count? o.O

1. Everyone here is not my friend. In fact, I have a few bitter enemies on this site. XP

2. I meant real-life friends. Internet friends are cool and all but uh...can't do much with 'em.

[armeck]

what's national friendship week?

[Rusty Claymore]

what's national friendship week?

It's what didn't go down during the world wars.
That, or the sales of friendship bracelets were down, so they pushed for a holiday that would make them sell again. XP

[Nate]

It's what didn't go down during the world wars.

Yeah as opposed to the modern day, where nobody hates anyone based solely on their race or religion.

Wait...

[Etoh*the*Greato]

It is also National Suicide Prevention Week.

Coincidence...?

[Dante]

1. Everyone here is not my friend. In fact, I have a few bitter enemies on this site. XP

I guess we all can at least value your honesty.

[Ante Bellum]

Maybe it's just me, I don't see much of a point to a friendship week. Or suicide prevention week. Or any other of those days/weeks/months that seem to be dedicated to things like that.
If they were really that important, people would care about them year-round, not just a day/week/month. :/

[Etoh*the*Greato]

I guess we all can at least value your honesty.

I value it pretty highly. Best to be up front about this sorta stuff.

[Okami]

Maybe it's just me, I don't see much of a point to a friendship week. Or suicide prevention week. Or any other of those days/weeks/months that seem to be dedicated to things like that.
If they were really that important, people would care about them year-round, not just a day/week/month. :/

That's the thing, for me, suicide prevention is a 24/7/365 thing, same with self-injury awareness. Some people just don't get it, but if I say, "Hey, it's suicide prevention week." people will be apt to want to get involved, help out, spread awareness, rally for the cause. I think it helps in spreading hope, even when there are those of us attempting to do so, daily.

[Nate]

I guess we all can at least value your honesty.

Honesty is highly overrated.

[Ante Bellum]

But it seems that people just kind of forget shortly afterward. If a person only seems to care about something for a short time out of the year, does it even really help?

[armeck]

Maybe it's just me, I don't see much of a point to a friendship week. Or suicide prevention week. Or any other of those days/weeks/months that seem to be dedicated to things like that.
If they were really that important, people would care about them year-round, not just a day/week/month. :/

well said!