Girl Online

17 December

Can You Outgrow Your Best Friend?

Hey, guys!

First of all, thank you SO much for all your lovely comments and tips on my blog about my panicky moments. Knowing they might be panic attacks weirdly makes me feel better. You guys are the best!

Now, I know I said I’d blog about something a bit more lighthearted this time but something has happened that I really need to share with you . . .

When I was little I had a coat that I absolutely adored.

It was bright red and had shiny black buttons that were shaped like little roses.

It also had a furry collar and furry cuffs.

When I wore it I felt like a beautiful princess from a really cold faraway land like Russia or Norway (it’s cold in Norway, right?).

I loved that coat so much I wore it everywhere, even when the weather started getting warmer.

And when the weather got too hot I refused to put the coat away in my cupboard. Instead, I kept it hanging on the back of my chair all summer so that I could still see it every day.

The second winter I had the coat it started to feel a little tight. But I didn’t care because I couldn’t bear the thought of life without it.

But by the third winter I’d grown so big I couldn’t do the buttons up anymore.

When my mum told me I’d have to have a new winter coat I was heartbroken. But after a while I grew to love my new coat. Although it didn’t have rose-shaped buttons or a furry collar, it was a beautiful shade of bluey green just like the sea. And after a while, when I looked at my old coat, the furry collar seemed a bit silly and it didn’t really feel as if it was mine anymore, so I let my mum take it to the charity shop.

At the moment, when I’m with one of my best friends, it’s like we don’t fit anymore.

Everything she says feels mean and hurtful. Everything she does feels selfish and immature.

At first I blamed myself. I thought that maybe I was saying or doing something wrong.

But then I wondered if sometimes our friendships are a bit like clothes and when they start feeling uncomfortable it’s not because we’ve done anything wrong. It just means that we’ve outgrown them.

I’ve decided that I’m not going to try to squeeze myself into a friendship that hurts me anymore. I’m going to let her go and just be friends with people who make me feel good about myself.

What about you?

Do you have any friends you think you might have outgrown?

I’d love to hear about it in the comments below . . .

Girl Online, going offline xxx