Friendship is a very tedious task to accomplish. From the awkward beginnings of acquaintanceship, to being a life-long friend, friendship always has its ways of being one of the most difficult relationships to obtain.

In order to have the unbreakable bond of a friend, you have to start with the uncomfortable encounter of the first conversation. This is the most crucial point of the process because it makes or breaks the label you decide to brand each other with: friends or not friends? That is the question. This stage tests for compatibility of similar interests of music or sports while deciding if this is someone you might want to end up “hanging out” with in the future.

If all goes well in the first encounter, you may move on to phase two; the texting phase. During this part of process, you and your acquaintance are still trying to get to know each other. This is also the time where a soon-to-be friendship can end at any minute. Since you have never really shared anything with each other that is crucial to your friendship, and you haven’t made any memories that are worth keeping, there is nothing keeping one friend from ditching the other.

Now I personally think this phase sucks. I find it incredibly rude and almost insulting when someone decides to take themselves out of your life for no apparent reason or explanation. Unfortunately, this has happened to me before, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it has happened to you too. When someone decides to disappear from your life, you start to question yourself. Your wonder what did you do wrong, if you were “annoying” or if you just weren’t “cool enough.” But just remember, if they desert you with no explanation, it was probably not your fault to begin with.

The third and final step of this awkward odyssey we call friendship, is the “sealing the deal” phase. If you have made it this far, congratulations! And if not, well, you will get it next time buddy. This stage focuses on the finer points of friendship, covering a vast array of questions, including: is this a person I can count on, or will he/she accept my weirdness, and more.

If you and your friend have made it through these three gruelling steps, then you have made a lifelong friend. Friendship can be a hard thing to obtain, but once you do, then you will realize that the process was worth it.