Millennial Friendships

Sometimes I feel completely lost trying to navigate friendships.

My perspective might seem unique to some and totally relatable to others.

 As an artist who ‘s been putting out work for some time, I’ve seen trends in the level of irl engagement from “friends” move in step, consistently, with how much press I’m getting at any particular time, a hard pill to swallow but I’ve made peace with it. Nothing personal.

I’m not sure most people realize they’re doing this, but it happens.

Even though social media has created more opportunities to connect, build personal brands and design a life of our choosing, it seems like we haven’t quite gotten the hang of it yet. We haven’t found a way to stand fully empowered by these tools in this incredible moment in history.

 The proliferation of memes and quotes that speak to flaking out on plans, and canceling people appear to be symptomatic of a growing unwillingness to build meaningful relationships or venture anywhere outside of our comfort zones unless of course there’s a check being cut or clout being amassed.

While everyday technological advances aim to free us up from menial tasks, foster connections and allow us to more easily express ourselves as a a global community, we’ve taken the bad habits of office politics and basic-ness into our life’s design. Are we so overwhelmed with this unprecedented potential that apathy seems the only viable route?

Who are your friends? Have you seen them lately?

So many images online suggests many would rather stunt than bond.

The way I see it, all these missed opportunities for true friendship might be the result of a cocktail of ambition and fear. 

I think people are afraid of not being successful, afraid of growing up, afraid to be vulnerable with each other. Novelty is exciting. Cutting someone off is easier than addressing any perceived slight.

What if that single bad vibe you felt was actually coming from and only experienced by you?

Every one of us has been hurt and is healing from various types betrayal while nursing some degree of trust issues.

We all want to avoid pain, but we can’t avoid it.

Have we put so much into building communities around careers and brands that we’re forgetting to build them around who we can grow with? Who will visit you in the hospital if something goes wrong? Who will celebrate important events with us?

As humans, much of our mental health depends on the quality and depth of our relationships.

We glorify being loners and isolating ourselves or even being popular and always surrounded by people where the bonds are weak. Then we wonder what’s contributing to our rising levels of anxiety.

This topic is so multi pronged, I couldn’t possibly cover it all in a single post.

These trends are just unsettling.

I can’t help but wonder, are we forgetting how to be simply be friends? No agenda, no posturing, no friend casting, just friends.

Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash