We all have them ‘friends’ but how many of these can you call really ‘good friends’?

These are the ones that you don’t have to ring every day, month or perhaps years, but they are your true friends.

They are the friends that you can count on one hand and in some cases just a few fingers of one hand. They are the ones that you can ring in the middle of the night for an emergency or just want to talk too and perhaps have a good cry with, but not in the middle of the night after all respect is part of being a good friend.

They will encourage you when you are down, help you celebrate when you have wonderful achievements in your life. They attend all the important events that are part of both of your lives. You can always rely on them, they understand you when no one else does or cares.

These are good friends.

You never take these friendships for granted, as it takes years of nurturing to actually know that some people can be classified as your real friends.

You meet them in all situations and places; it is identifying which friend has the potential to be good friends that counts.

I remember telling one of my daughters when she had the typical ‘friend problem’ at school, “you will go through life and make friends, but it is identifying who are your true friends that actually count and generally that is just a few”.