Around this time every year, people either pair up as boyfriend and girlfriend, do some sort of half-committing by naming each other their valentine, or break up under the pressure of their impeding relationship.  If a relationship with a signification other ends, a support system of friends is most likely waiting to pick up the pieces.

Great friends can make you feel loved, just as much as a boyfriend or girlfriend.  Collectively, friends can show you more love, because you can have more than one!

I have a great support system in my family.  I couldn’t imagine life without them, they have shown me more love throughout my years than I could hope to repay.  For me, the love of my friends is an amazing bonus, that makes me wonder how I dealt with life before having such a great network.

While you can’t choose your family, friendships are formed purely based on shared interests and experiences.  Good friends love you enough to tell you the truth, even when everyone else doesn’t have the heart to say anything.  In my life I encountered a few different types of friends, based on what I was going through in my life.

Photo Credit: Getty Images – Moment

High school friends were there from a very young age and and helped me to navigate through all of the drama in high school when a look from a boy/girl was a life and death situation.  Love from a high school friend meant they could tell me honestly that Susie was just trying to make David jealous by being my date to the prom.  It also meant that they would be there no matter what, in the eternity that four years of high school seemed to fill.  Upon graduation, the doubt that I could ever love friends as much as those in high school weighed heavily on my mind.

Friends in college are a different breed.  The weird music, television shows and movies that weren’t cool in high school are celebrated upon entering college and served to help me form new friendships.  The bonds formed from that blank slate that is freshman year still connect me to some of my friends today.  They became much stronger bonds after we studied all night together and then used the weekend to collectively blow off steam.  These friends shared in my overwhelming stress of finals week and were always there to greet me at the beginning of every new semester until one day, college was over.  Love from these friends stems from fighting together in the trenches of school, career opportunities and pursuits of the opposite sex.

There is no question that I wouldn’t have made it through the tough times that I’ve experienced had it not been for the brotherly (and sisterly) love of my friends.  However, what has been most important is having that person beside me who cares about me and can identify with what I am going through.  Friends who knew me better than my parents did when I was a teenager, who could relate to my struggles making the grade while seriously dating in college, and those who could identify with my frustratingly short professional career.

The love of friendship has meant so much to me in the past.  Countless great nights have been shared with friends.  We also have taken turns talking each other down off of the ledge.  February is all about the love of your valentine, maybe we should all remember the love of our friends.  Those people who have been by our side long before our significant others came along.

All You Need Blogger: Ben Wilcox

Ben is a guy in his twenties who was raised in the Midwest who has recently moved to Baltimore, Maryland area.  He has an obsession with anything music and football or dog-related.  Through his blog, www.benjamintwilcox.com, he seeks to provide a blueprint for self improvement and contentment for everyday life.  You can follow him on Twitter @benjaminwilcox.

Song: Where Everybody Knows Your Name (Theme from Cheers)