Why You Need Ugly Friends

You call your Ugly friends in your worst moments and most regrettable circumstances. They are the ones that hold your hair over toilets and wipe your tears over caskets. No matter if you are sick, angry, hurt, ashamed, naked or afraid, they will stare your Ugly in the face and they will somehow make you laugh about it. 

The Importance of Ugly Friends

I haven’t written a personal post in a while. I’ve been waiting for a good topic. This past weekend, I took a girls trip with my three very best friends from college in honor of our 40th birthdays. We picked up right where we’d left off and laughed until our sides hurt. They are truly my best friends in the world. We can be absolutely raw and unfiltered with one another. Spending four full days surrounded by that total transparency left me feeling buoyant and recharged and the whole experience got me thinking about friendships. 

In the last few years, I’ve noticed a trend on social media. Lots of memes about letting your positive light shine. To be your very best you need to cut out toxic friends like a cancer. Surround yourself with positive people and thats what you’ll become. It’s a bright, shiny, message inspiring you to live your very Best Life. And I applaud that. 

When the Worst Happens

But sometimes, right in the middle of living your very Best Life, the Worst of things can happen. And in those moments, you need Ugly Friends. 

When life wrings you out like a lemon gone bad, you don’t always want to hear from Little Miss Sunshine. In those moments, you may not appreciate a shining light of positivity standing in the middle of your shit storm. When all the silver linings have gone dark, you’re gonna need a few select people to count on. These are your Ugly friends.  

You call your Ugly friends in your worst moments and most regrettable circumstances. They are the ones that hold your hair over toilets and wipe your tears over caskets. You know no matter what life throws at you, they will come. They will accept the very worst version of you simply because you’re you. With them you don’t need to hide or pretend. No matter if you are sick, angry, hurt, ashamed, naked or afraid, they will stare your Ugly in the face and they will somehow make you laugh about it. 

A Hand in the Dark

Don’t get me wrong, we all need positive people in our lives. We need people to aspire to, to pick us up, and to brighten our days. They’re the people we choose to interact with on a daily basis. But no matter how bright and shiny your life is, one day everyone hits a dark patch. When you suddenly fall down a deep dark hole, it’s the Ugly ones that will crawl down into that hole and sit in the darkness with you until it’s time to drag yourself back into the light. 

Look around your bright shiny Best Life and make sure you can still see your Ugly Friends. Some day, you’re gonna need them.