Strangers or Friends ?

What would you be ? Would you be popular ? Or would you be right ?  I have seen people faking themselves just to be popular . That difference between real and fake is lost in trying to be popular.

Faking a smile , an expression of joy , happiness when actually you are not ,a familiarity with people who you really don't know. Isn't that all faking? And to tell you the truth, I’ve done it too. But friendships? Friendship can't be faked. At least, not by me. But then , I’m not popular either. And not as desperate as some one who would like to notch up a few points on the popularity chart to actually fake a friendship.

You throw parties for strangers, welcome them with the best of cuisines served in the most expensive cutlery , open your house to those strangers, show off your furniture and what-have-you and indulge in some "aww-so-sweet-of-you" conversations - just so that you can call those strangers 'friends'.

It’s the desperation to be seen with the rich and the famous of your city, to have your name on the invitation list of the high profile parties in town. Don’t mislead yourself to believe that any of that is friendship because friendship isn’t about enjoying those meaningless conversations or mouthing the ‘right’ words. It’s not about using someone’s contacts for your benefits . It’s not about popularity.

I got this SMS from a friend some days back...

"Friendship is about standing up for a person , about wishing him well , about treating him as more than fodder for gossip . It’s about being able to laugh at somebody’s face and not behind his back . It’s about knowing how you’re different from your friend and accepting him for who he is . But not accepting him for what he is because he’s rich and famous . It’s about being able to tell him he’s your friend , without the fear of your name being struck off the invitation list to his party."

I may not be popular, but I hope I’ve been a friend :)