What qualities do you most admire in your friends

Kindness and knowing how to listen deeply for understanding.

Somebody, and I wish I could remember who and on what thread, posted an interesting take on friendship as a train travelling through life where friends get on and off at different stations, some never get back on, some just change carriages for a while and some take the whole journey with you.
I do hope that poster comes on and expands on it. I thought it was rather good

A caring personality, very welcoming when I visit, and sociable to my family when they are here.

Loyalty and sincerity are essential and a good sense of humour for me, is very important. I have known some 'friends' who hop around from one friendship group to another as they are desperate for approval from everyone. They are never there when you need them.

Theoddbird I've just read that Roedean is teaching axe skills to girls, so your in good company?
Who knows if in years to come, some of those students will be discussing how their wood chopping skill, drew them together and cemented their friendship?
Sorry to other posters, back to friends best qualities.

Their ability to not only put up with me but apparently enjoy my company.

Good character. With a sense of humour. Someone who accepts me as I am, with fondness and affection. I am truly blessed in my friends.

This is a hard one as I have many friends I have met across the years. They are not all local and I do not see them all regularly but I value them.
They are all very different. I am a tolerant person so do not analyse why I am still friends with these people. When I am with them I enjoy their company for different reasons.

Some have let me down at times but only one have I called it a day on as the others have redeemed themselves in different ways and I hate being judgemental.

Nobody is perfect all the time or can always live up to our expectations.

Well that is quite a feat Theoddbird? wielding an axe would be enough for me!

Shared sense of humour is absolutely vital

This article is interesting
socialpronow.com/blog/difference-friend-acquaintance/

The difference between a friend, acquaintance, close friend, and intimate friend
There are 4 stages of friendship – acquaintance, casual friend, close friend, and intimate friend:

An acquaintance is a person you know, but who is not a close friend.[2] It’s the person you run into in the hallway or feel comfortable meeting in a group setting, but usually not by yourself.
A casual friend is a person you are more emotionally attached to.[3] You feel comfortable meeting with this person one on one.
A close friend is a person you spend time with regularly and can depend on. You feel comfortable reaching out to this person at any time.
An intimate friend is someone you can share anything with.
One study found that the difference between friends and acquaintances is that we reveal much more of ourselves to a friend than an acquaintance, and we try harder to impress acquaintances than friends.[1]

Considering these two components can help you determine whether someone is your acquaintance or your true friend:

How much do I trust this person/how comfortable am I sharing the more personal details of my life with them?
How concerned am I with impressing this person/how comfortable am I being my true self around them?
Now let’s take a closer look at each of the different categories of friendship and how they play out on a day-to-day basis.

I am a good listener, but please can someone listen to me for a change? That’s why I come to GN ?

Loyalty. Lockdown sorted the chaf from the wheat. Apparently my friends admire my ability to cut and split logs at the age of 70....hahaha

Reliability, I think. Otherwise I feel as if I am being used if someone doesn't turn up without letting me know. Surely this is bad manners. Consideration for others feelings follows this. Should we differentiate between friends and acquaintances?

A good listener and someone who brings out the best in you. Someone kind and welcoming who is interested in you, who will say "come round for a cuppa this afternoon" (I imagine). I am told I am a good listener and I'm interested in the other person. Does true friendship take effort to nurture and maintain? I've always thought so. There are some lovely posts here about enduring friendships which are so heartwarming, especially the support given during lockdown. I'm quite sure I have been on the receiving end of people who 'cull' friends once they have outlived their 'usefulness' or who are not in the same socio-economic group any more, and I have often felt confused about the whole concept of friendship, especially those 'cliquey' friendships. I've learnt the painful lesson that you can't make people like you. I have also experienced 'ghosting' when going through a tough time. Not all of us are lucky enough to find a 'bosom friend', but that doesn't mean you can't make friends with yourself, though many would find that strange (but it is possible). My mother is at the stage of having lost nearly all her close friends, some friendships aving lasted over 80 years. It's very sad and she misses them dearly.

I am lucky to have quite a few good friends. I hope I am a good friend to them. I value kindness, loyalty, sticking with me through bad patches, GSOH, ability to laugh at ourselves, understanding, compassion to others and open mindedness.

I believe loyalty and compassion. Loyalty you know who you can rely on, compassion is the shoulder you can cry on.

Definitely listening skills and a generousity of spirit.

Reliability, very good sense of humour, kindness and the ability to listen as well as talk. Someone you could ring in the middle of the night in a crisis. Someone who doesn’t constantly talk about their wonderful grandchildren, which all of us have except one.

Loyalty and a great sense of humour.

One of my friends has been a friend for over 40 years we worked together and became good friends. She was a support when my son died and I have been a support to her when she recently found out she had cancer, she’s so strong and I admire her the treatment was successful. She said how I coped with my sons death was amazing so I guess we are two string woman

Kindness, loyalty, honesty. Maybe the three go together. Loyal enough to tell you when you are out of line, honest enough to say it, kind enough to put it well. Resilient enough to accept it when you give back your honest opinions too. I have 2 friends who are a wonderful combination of those things and they compliment each other so well.

I have a very small circle of close friends. Infact two of them were in my class at school. They are there through the good times and bad times as well. I have had so called friends that ran when the going got tough.

Caring. Being there. Not gossiping. Ability to keep a secret. Ready to listen. Can cook - and will, for others, if necessary. Giving good advice. Never taking sides. Will ruin errands / do laundry / babysit if necessary. So... I do this... and so do many of my friends.

Kindness, above all else.