Friends...

Humans are social creatures and for the most part seek the companionship of others. You too will be seeking the companionship of others. Some of these friends will be good choices and others not so much. Some will be very good to you and other will hurt you deeply. I won't always be there to help you manage your friendships, nor will you want me to.

I see a lot of myself in you. Both of you are so caring and wanting to please. You are willing to go beyond your friends expectations to show that you are a good friend. However, relationships are not only built on trust, but it's also reciprocal. Your friends should want to do for you as much as you do for them. Being helpful is a good thing, but not so much that people will take advantage of your kindness. Sometimes they will want to see how far they can take your compassion for them and use it to get what they want.

Over the course of your lives, you will make many friends. I hope that you will make more good friends than bad. But no doubt there will come a time when you meet someone and they are really not a confidant. There is nothing like the feeling of someone who you thought you could trust, that betrays you and makes you feel like your friendship isn't valuable. That pain can be very gut wrenching and difficult to bear. At times this may be almost embarrassing, because people who care for you warned you that the friend didn't have good intentions, but despite the warnings, you chose to try and see past their faults. You may not know who to turn to and you may not be even be able to trust your own thoughts. It is in this time of need that I hope you can find me.

These are the times I hope you can seek my advice. Allow me to be your friend when you are in need, allow me to be your father. I will not be able to get rid of your pain, but I will listen and try to give you the best advice as I can.

When in doubt and the friendship seems far from repair... Stop reading the last chapter so you can move on to the next one....