Esther Perel Instagram – Friends are an enormously important part of my life. I dedicate time to building new friendships, fostering a community, and maintaining relationships all over the world. In my office, I encourage my clients to make friends and explore the myriad of questions that arise around these relationships as often as I do romantic relationships. What does friendship mean? What are different degrees of friendships? What different types? How do you talk to your friends? How do you fight with your friends? How do you make up with your friends? We don’t focus enough on these questions in friendship, yet they are the balms of people’s lives. Priya Parker once explained to me that when people gather, they are there for you, but they are also there for themselves. For when we know that we matter to others, it gives us a significance. Many of you have heard me explain how, today, we turn to one person, our partner, to provide what an entire village once did: a sense of grounding, meaning, and continuity. Now, I am meditating on the importance of the village: how I have built my village and how you can build and maintain yours. No matter how deep your connection, friendships require emotional maintenance. Connection creates positive by-products; it is an antidote to loneliness. Friends are a lifeline, an oxygen mask. And Object Constancy—our capacity to understand that an absent person or object exists and will return—is a muscle that needs to be exercised. Consider this a workout plan for the friendships that matter most to you. Remember: it is the quality of our relationships that determines the quality of our lives. To explore the topic further, visit the blog through the link in my bio.