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04 April 2012

Friend Culling

FriendsToday was going to be a good day. After last night's fabulous girls night and a much needed laugh and one too many glasses of white wine, I woke up to Gentleman Friend telling me that he would do the school run and that I could "take it easy" today - it just doesn't get any better than that! I ran to get some essential supplies from around the house (iPad, cup of tea, toasted hot cross bun and all the TV remote controls) before crawling back into bed to watch trash television and catch up on my social networking when... To my horror... I received an abusive Facebook message from a long since culled ex-friend. Seriously?! I cut her off and haven't seen or spoken to her for over three years and she still hasn't got the message? I don't know why I'm surprised, she isn't very stable. I met her when I was new and friendless in France and desperation attracts... Well, you get the point. No more mud slinging!

I have only culled a few friends through the course of my life but I think it can be a healthy thing to do. Life is hard enough without surrounding yourself with negative people who bring you down and revel in your misfortune.

So I'm taking a stand! I will not let this person ruin my day but instead I'm going to write a Guide for others, including all the things that I should have done but didn't. Lesson learned!

  1. Don't be an ostrich (like me) because sticking your head in the sand and hoping that the problem will go away if avoided for long enough only leads to abusive messages further down the line! Be honest with the offending individual. Tell them how they make you feel. Try to break up in person.

  2. BLOCK them from all your social networking sites. (I wish I had!)

  3. Rant about them with a "good" friend as a cathartic exercise... Get that negativity out! Don't let it fester!

  4. Appreciate your real friends and strive to be good to them.

  5. Move on and fill your life with positive energy, love and amazing people. There are so many truly fabulous people in the world to meet, you don't have a moment to waste!

Photo credit: h.koppdelaney

1 comments:

I've been there. My Mum said to me a long time ago that just because you've been friends with someone for a part of your life doesn't mean you have to be friends with them your entire life. It's really stuck with me..life's too short to give up your time for people you don't want to. I love point 3. Such a girl thing that has to be done with other girls. If I try and have a rant like that at my husband he just looks at me blankly. Blokes just don't get it! Another great post! :)

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