Resigning From Friendships

Should We Give Our Friends the Pink Slip?

In 1923 Kahlil Gibran wrote on friendship in his book of essays, The Prophet.

“…And let your best be for your friend.
If he must know the ebb of your tide, let him know its flood also.
For what is your friend that you should seek him with hours to kill?
Seek him always with hours to live”.

— Kahlil Gibran

Each time I read the poem, a new line is highlighted in my mind. Today it’s, “…let your best be for your friend”.

But what of an unreciprocated best?

What of the friendships we water, nuture, and maintain just for weeds of confusion, lack of accountability, and poor choices to sprout where we expected flowers of trust, reliability, and selflessness to bloom. What of the friends who choose to merely keep us around but never fight for us. Do these friendships require a mere pruning, patience for the burgeoning of the season, or a pulling at the root?

When do you know to walk away or to stay? Especially from a friend, who I’d argue is at times more vital than a sibling or a partner. Do we hand our friend a resignation…