The Strength of Female Friendships
Women are the better sex. At least that’s what us gals think. We have evidence. We live longer (truth). More of us go to college and graduate (truth). Overall, we’re just smarter (okay, that’s not actually true). While we pat ourselves on the back for the proven-by-some-study reasons why women are the better sex, I dare say we add a not-proven category to the list, one which I truly believe women do better than men: Friendship.
Female friendship is a thing of beauty when done correctly. Women are experts at being there for each other. We have 8 hour long phone conversations because we have that much to say. We talk about our biggest fears, our hopes and dreams, our insecurities, our mistakes, our greatest moments, everything that’s important in our lives, and we get incredibly truthful with each other once the clock strikes 4 A.M. and we’re sleepily confessing the innermost truths of our souls.
We’re not afraid to get silly. We sing into hairbrushes to the pop songs on our guilty-pleasure playlist. We put on face masks and laugh at our green monster faces. We go shopping to try on clothes that look ridiculous on us so we can take pictures and giggle later at the memories. We booty dance and announce that we hate boys because they’re annoying us that night and we would really rather dance with each other.
We’re not afraid to get emotional. We sob into each other’s shoulders and share long hugs at the end of hard days. We sit on each other’s couches, surrounded by fluffy pillows and talk about scary life stuff while sipping Chardonnay out of a tumbler cause we’re just that classy. We analyze our other relationships over lunch and help each other decide if it really is the right time to break up with our significant others.
We’re not afraid to be affectionate. We cuddle and share beds after a long night of dancing in Vegas. We brush each other’s hair and get makeup smudges off each other’s cheekbones. We grab each other’s boobs and receive the occasional ass slap, usually when we’re drunk but not always. We walk down the street holding hands because we feel like it.
Some men may do these things. I’m not saying no man has ever cried on a friend’s shoulder or talked about his hopes, dreams, feelings and fears to one of his buddies. But women generally feel more comfortable being close to each other. We share more affection and love because we’re better taught to express our feelings; we can be close longer without one of us feeling uncomfortable and giving the obligatory “Dude, don’t be gay” defense mechanism. And this is why we reign supreme when it comes to friendship. What in the world would we do without each other?
You can read more from Melissa Townsend on her blog.
