Friends.

Whether you love it or you hate it Friends has played a major role in the lives of millennials.

I for one have spent copious amounts of hours watching and listening to friends. Listening you say? I have become so au fait with the show that I can leave the television playing in one room and with the volume up I can hear everything whilst simultaneously make dinner and see that episode play out in my head. It is almost as enjoyable as watching it. Friends, for me, has become a comfort and a safety blanket. It is the show that I watch when I am happy and sad it lifts my spirits even on the darkest days.

I have always thought it was a great feel good sit- com. However, recently I have come to appreciate it even more. The idea that six friends could meet up almost daily in their 20’s and 30’s is idealistic, to say the least. That is one of the saddest parts about leaving school and college. It is the sense comradery.

Friends allows us to imagine a world where we see our friends all the time. Where we hang out everyday after work and drink coffee. In reality, most of us don’t see out friends all that often. Many of my friends have emigrated and I haven’t seen them in person for years. We have to stay in touch via WhatsApp and Zoom calls. Some of my friends have children- so when the kids come the fun is undone- just kidding. All joking aside, as you get older the dynamic shifts in a friend group. Some go one way and others another. Some might emigrate, some never leave their hometown. Some have kids and some become career driven.  The group moves on and things change. Watching Friends lets us imagine a life where we all hang out as adults, just like we never left school.