Friendship isn’t always
the loudest person in the room.
Sometimes it’s
the person who notices
you’ve gone quiet.
The person who saves you a seat
without asking why you’re late.
The person who remembers
the little things
you forgot you ever told them.
I’ve learned that people
can enter your life like fireworks
bright, exciting,
impossible to ignore
and still disappear
before the sky goes dark.
And that’s okay.
Because some people
aren’t meant to stay forever.
But then there are the ones
who stay through awkward silences,
bad days,
misunderstandings,
and versions of you
that aren’t easy to understand.
They don’t need you
to be happy every day.
They just remind you
that you don’t have to carry
every day alone.
Maybe that’s what friendship is:
not someone who promises
they’ll never leave,
but someone who keeps choosing
to show up
while they’re here.
Kids Help Phone (KHP) is honoured to share creative content submitted by youth from coast to coast to coast as they Feel Out Loud with us. We thank the Feel Out Loud Community Creator of this piece for their contribution to youth mental health and well-being in Canada. For more information on the Feel Out Loud Community Creator Space and / or how you can submit your own creative content for possible publication, you can visit the submission page.
