Lovers come and go. But that doesn’t really matter as long as you have friends. Friendship is the most super-wonderful thing in the world. A young colleague recently wrote a long ode to friendship: "Since more and more young people are freeing themselves from the dictatorship of couplehood, and decide to live alone, friends are not just there to fill the empty hours or function as agony aunts. "Friendship has now been given the chance to become the biggest love affair of your life." Research suggests the same, albeit in not quite as emotional words. Those who have friends live longer and are more healthy, suffer less from depression, and their thighs don’t burn so much when standing with their backs against the wall and performing deep knee-bends — because they can handle pain better. All of that is most certainly true, but could it be that we over-interpret these findings in our friendship-induced prudence? Getting a prescription for an antidepressant and training for a half marath...

Subscribe now to unlock this article.

Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).

There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.

Cancel anytime.

Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.

Speech Bubbles

Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.