A Girl's Guide to Misfriendship

My title contains an unword, I know, but somehow that unword describes the most recent dramatic events in this household.  In case you did not know this, girls can be pretty cruel.  Not my girls, but other girls - out there- in the world, so to speak.

My girls are pretty sweet, and probably too sweet for some people.  When you get to about the second grade, you are finding some new shades of friendship.  You are meeting girls who make friendship feel like an encounter with the Dark Side.  Combine this encounter with a pretty sweet girl who feels guilt just thinking mean thoughts about another person, and you are sure to have some heartbreak.

So, as for this mom's advice to her earnest daughters, I have these reminders:

1.  Still waters run deep; choppy waters don't.  If you have a lot of ups and downs with a girl, consider sailing your boat in clearer waters.

2.  Yelling "sorry" at a friend has never counted as an apology and it never will.

3.  When a girl breaks your personal moral code, you need to get some distance.

4.  Be tough around mean girls - they are manipulative and enjoy your tears.  When someone accuses you of being too sensitive, it has usually been preceded by their mean spirit and harsh anger.  Meanness can be conquered in time, but tears just fuel their fire.

I do not look forward to the next few years where you will find yourself matched up against strong frenemies.  Just trust in the people who never let you down and expect little from the ones that do.