Of Friends

This is my favorite college essay, but I need to note that it is not the one I applied with. Nevertheless, enjoy it while you can, because I will keep it on the blog for just a little while. It is both personal and confidential.

It was a cold Thursday evening, just like any other lately. I was just finishing my math homework and was looking forward to another several hours of studying for one of my SATs, just like I had done for several evenings now. Neither me, nor my friends could afford going out in the evening during week days because we were all very busy – the junior year was a really hard one for all of us. That is why I was surprised when my phone rang - it was one of my friends from school. I answered only to hear his desperate voice asking me for a big favor. He told me he had a Biology test the next day but was completely unprepared and understood almost nothing of the things that were to be on the test. He asked me to meet in a pizza restaurant that was close to both our homes, so that I could explain to him what I could. I had taken that test the same day so I knew everything he needed, but I hesitated for a moment – I had my SAT to study for, moreover I lived pretty far away and my transport was not convenient at all. But he was my friend, so I would feel bad to turn him down. Moreover I knew that I could still study for the SAT when I come back, so I told him I could do it.

The bus ride from my home to the place where he wanted to meet lasted about half an hour. As I was waiting to reach my destination, I was thinking about whether I did the right thing. I naturally asked myself the question “would he do the same for me if he were in my place?”, but I wouldn’t come up with an answer. I didn’t want to admit to myself, that he most probably wouldn’t. But I would never know, I told myself. It would take an exceptionally desperate situation to make me ask for such a favor. I take pleasure in doing what I have to do on my own. I like to know that I can handle any task that I am given on my own, so that I feel confident when someone else asks for help.

That same friend surprised me one more time. It was this summer and by then we had started seeing each other much more rarely. He called me at six o clock one morning and asked me to come see him downtown as quickly as possible. He wouldn’t tell me why he wanted to see me until I came, but I told him that I needed at least two hours to get downtown. When I got there, it turned out that he wanted to see me because he couldn’t sleep and needed company. In the first moment I was frustrated – why would he call me in early morning for such a thing?! But then he explained that he had been to a party the night before and that things had happened there, that he needed to talk about. I still didn’t understand why he called me, of all people – we weren’t that close anymore. But he told me that anybody else he could call would say “Come on, it’s too early. Can’t it wait?”

When I thought about it, he was right. People believe that the more egoistic they are the better chance they have to succeed in life. Most people I know have started abandoning friendships for the sake of pursuing their own ambitions. But I never thought that having friends is of any harm to my ambitions. I have always tried to help people out and to be there for them, even if they are not my best friends or even if they wouldn’t do the same for me. After all I believe that one day, if I fulfill my dreams, they would suddenly seem so worthless if I don’t have friends to share them with. So I smiled quietly, listening to his story. He wouldn’t do the same for me, but next time he called, I would be there.