It’s International Friendship Day on 30th July. Created in 2011 by the United Nations, the idea of the day is to promote friendships between people, countries and cultures, build bridges between communities and respect diversity.
It’s also a day that encourages us to celebrate kindness, togetherness and friendship. Celebrating a friendship can be something as simple as sending them an email, having a catch up on the phone or meeting up for a socially distanced cup of coffee. Friendship is about enjoying the things we have in common but it’s also about appreciating our differences.
Good friendships are good for our physical and mental health. They can comfort us, help us deal with stress and make better lifestyle choices. Spending time with positive friends can also change our outlook for the better and boost our self-worth.
To mark the day, we’ve been looking at some of the qualities that make a good friend.
We think a good friend is someone who:
- listens
- doesn’t judge or put you down
- is kind and respects your views, even if they don’t agree with you
- is loyal and trustworthy
- laughs with you
- comforts you when you feel upset
- is there when things get tough
- encourages you
- makes you feel happy
What do you think makes a good friend? Why not let us know in the comments below. We look forward to hearing from you.