Psalm 1:1

This bible verse says that people are blessed if they do not follow the advice of wicked people, if they stay away from the company of sinners, and join in with the mockers.

I think there’s a saying, “Tell me who your friends are, I’ll tell you who you are”. I do not know who coined the phrase but there is truth to it. It may not be true in all cases but it is generally true. “I know you by the company you keep” is another famous phrase I remember.

I am a dreamer as I always tell my daughter. I am positive and I always have hope. I always look forward to a positive future. In this dreaming and planning stage, although you look forward to a positive future, you encounter a lot of negativity from other people. From friends or family, you will encounter these multitude of negative vibes. Instead of uplifting advice and encouragement, you get skeptical attitudes and negative thoughts. I remember a Filipino characteristic that we studied in school, that of “crab mentality”, a negative characteristic of Filipinos, as they say. It is aptly described this way, that if you put a group of crabs in a bucket, when a crab tries to climb up the bucket, the other crabs pull it back down. That’s “crab mentality” for you. Stay away from people who bring you down. Because if you are not careful, you might begin to doubt yourself. Another common term they use for them, stay away from “toxic” people.

Tell me who your friends are, I’ll tell you who you are. If you associate yourself with a bunch of hoodlums, people will think of you as a hoodlum yourself. If you hang out with a bunch of sluts, party with them, people will brand you as a slut yourself. If your friends are addicts, people will think that you’re an addict as well. It may not be true, but the reality is, people think that way. I know you by the company you keep. What’s the solution from this predicament? STAY AWAY FROM THEM. Staying away from them might be harsh, but, it will be good for you and it might be good for them, too. A good thing might happen, they will realize that they are losing a good friend, and soon, mend their ways and follow your good example.

If you continue to associate yourself with “mockers”, instead of you influencing them to mend their ways, what might happen is, the reverse, they influence you to become just like them. You’ll breathe the same air they breathe. You copy their actions. Peer pressure is much stronger. Even rich people say they stay rich because they associate only with ‘rich’ people. That you won’t catch them mingling with ‘poor’ people who they consider as losers. That they do not want to get their losing attitude. Come to think of it, such thinking might be flawed and maybe, discriminatory and immoral, but, there’s some truth to it. So, the better thing to do is, just stay away from them.

This is my take on it and I hope you’ll like it. Leave a comment as you please. Thank you very much!