International Day of Friendship

International Day of Friendship on July 30 comes a few days before Friendship Day in the United States on Sunday, August 5.

While the two days have the same purpose, International Friendship Day is global while National Friendship Day is only within America.

So, what is friendship anyway?

Friendship is defined as having a close relationship with another. It involves a close attachment, bond or union.

Mutual respect, trust. loyalty and support exist between individuals, organizations, communities, and nations.

Since July 30 is International Friendship Day, take the time to let your social media friends all over the world know that you care about them even if you don't click "like" on every one of their posts.

Remember that you will make friends throughout your life. Some you will keep and some will keep you. However, you will learn something valuable from every friendship. What you have learned from friends in the past have made you who you are today. In some ways, they have had an impact on you.

International Friendship Day came about in 2011 when the UN General Assembly came up with the idea that friendships can bring communities together. Friendships are not limited to being just between two individuals. Friendships can also be between organizations, countries, cultures and other things with something in common.

In order to foster friendships, each year the UN recommends groups and organizations to have public events that make friendships available. There could be certain groups in the community as well as government organizations that could promote friendships.

The United States of America has friends with some countries of the world. The Philippines is a country that has been an ally of the United States since 1947.

Other longtime allies include Germany, France, Austria, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Israel, Canada and the United Kingdom.

While the countries don't always see eye-to-eye on every issue, they maintain a good working relationship. Also, just because the United States is a friend with the above-named countries, it doesn't mean the countries are friends with each other.

When it comes to familiar celebrities who are friends, Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King's names should be under friendship in the dictionary. They have been friends for over 40 years. We have seen them on road trips together as well as being together on many other occasions. They say they can tell each other secrets that they can't share with someone else. Even though Oprah and Stedman Graham have also been in a relationship for over three decades, Oprah describes Gayle as her best friend.

The public saw how many friends Meghan Meghan had when she married Prince Harry on May 19, 2018. Many of them attended her wedding. They included tennis champion Serena Williams and actress Priyanka Chopra.

Consider yourself blessed if you have a good friend whether near or far or whether you have one or many. Proverbs 18:24 says a friend will stick closer to you than a brother. Sometimes friends are more faithful to you than your own family members.

Cherish your friends and acknowledge them on International Friendship Day.