Friendship Matters

By Emma N., age 11, Utah, USA

When I moved to Mexico with my family, I made friends with a group of kids who played together but left some people out. One day I decided to go play with a girl named Eli, who was sitting by herself in a corner. We started sitting together at lunchtime, and we played basketball and soccer and made things together.

At first my group of friends said, “If you want to be her friend, then we can’t be your friend.” But I kept spending time with Eli. Eventually my group of friends joined us, and we all became friends.

I told Eli about the Church and what I liked about it. She decided to come to my baptism and started coming to church with us quite often. Now we live in different cities, but we still keep in touch through video chat and email. She is still in my heart.

Here’s what I learned about friendship:

1. It’s good to have a friend who will be with you even if you’re having a hard time.

2. Be friendly and remember that other people have feelings too. Take time to learn about what they like to do and what their personality is like.

3. Include everyone and get to know others.

4. It’s what’s inside that matters. It doesn’t matter where they live, what they look like on the outside, or what their religion is. Everyone needs the same things.

5. You can learn about different cultures and appreciate them. My friends in Mexico and my friends in the United States are different, but they are the same too.