49 Friendship Poems
A heartfelt collection of short poems celebrating the joy of true friendship.
Updated July 15, 2025, by Catherine Pulsifer
Friendship is one of life's greatest blessings, a bond filled with laughter, support, and cherished moments. This collection of short friendship poems is meant to celebrate those special connections and remind us of the joy that true friends bring. Whether you want to share a poem with someone dear or simply reflect on the gift of friendship, these verses offer warmth and inspiration.
Over the years, we've gathered heartfelt poetry, some shared by friends, others written for us with love. Each poem reflects the kindness, trust, and companionship that make friendships so valuable. We hope these words bring a smile to your face and remind you to treasure the friends who make life brighter.
Never Take Friendship For Granted
Never take friendship for granted
Realize the blessing it is
It is worth more than money
It is a gift of life, always.
Friendship requires give and take
We can't always have our way
We must learn to compromise
And everything will be okay.
Friendship stands the test of time
Friends help us when we are blue
And friends share the happy times
Cherish your friends who are true.
Appreciate your friends, use one of these poems to do just that:
Attend To Thine Alone
Life defiled, name debauched,
Peace bids you long adieu:
When you concern yourself in other business,
That does not concern you,
Meddling makes foes and enemies,
And friends but very few;
It is well to let that alone,
That does not bother you.
To accomplish well life's perfection,
We must the line of wisdom hew;
Measure the sill with the rule of honor,
It is the square fur me and you.
An honorable man with ways pervert,
The world never knew;
If you mingle with bad companions.
They will bring on trouble to you.
The world was made through love and mercy,
Each and everything we view;
If we give God the praise of all.
It will moralize me and you.
God blesses and cares for all,
He gives us duty and work to do;
Dictated by the star of truth,
The conscience of me and you.
Prudence accomplishes many things,
Honesty makes us brave and true;
Precision will eventually make you friends
That now are foes to you.
Old Friendship Street
Love led me to an unknown land and fain was I to go;
From peak to peak a weary way he lures me to and fro;
On narrow ledge and dizzy height he dares my wayworn feet
I would that I were back again to walk Old Friendship Street.
It's there one knew the level road, the even grass-grown way;
My brain grew never wildered there, my feet might never stray;
But here I quarrel for the path with every soul I meet -
I would that I were back again to walk Old Friendship Street.
It's here I find no gracious hand to close within my own,
But there one never raised a song to find he sang alone;
And always at a neighbour's hearth were kindly glass and seat
I would that I were back again to walk Old Friendship Street.
I'm sick of awful depths and heights, I'm sick of storm and strife;
I'll let love lead for bolder folk and take my ease in life.
I know whose voice will hail me first, whose welcoming be sweet
It's I am going back again to walk Old Friendship Street.
Friendship is an important piece of life. Be inspired by these poems:
It Would Be Better
Oh, my friend, it would be better
If to those we love, we gave
Tender words while they were with us
Than to say them o'er a grave!
Many a heart is hungry, starving,
For a little word of love;
Speak it then, and as the sunshine
Gilds the lofty peaks above,
So the joy of those who hear it
Sends its radiance down life's way,
And the world is brighter, better,
For the loving words we say.
Loving words will cost but little,
As along through life we go;
Let us, then, make others happy, —
If you love them, tell them so.
Fountain of Friendship
Just a word of kindly greeting;
Just a thought of other's care;
Just a word of love repeating;
How it lifts the load that's there!
Just to know another's thinking;
Just to feel another's there;
Just to hope another's drinking;
At the fountain of friendship fair.
This it is that sets us feeling;
This it is that cheers the soul;
This it is that comes revealing,
What is friendship's real goal.
Let me then a kind word speak;
Let me cheer another's heart;
Let me joy for others seek
As in life I take my part.
Faults Of Others
What are another's faults to me?
I've not a vulture's bill,
To pick at every flaw I see,
And make it wider still.
It is enough for me to know
I've follies of my own;
And on my heart the care bestow,
And let my friends alone.
Friends
Never lose an old friend
No matter what the cause.
We wouldn't ever do it
If we didn't look for flaws.
The one thing worthwhile having
Is a friend that's stood the test.
And who has one friend such as this
Knows friendship at its best.
Keep in touch with friends, read our collection of friendship poems:
Friendship
We often meet in walks of life.
Those who are strange of face;
But they oftimes in passing,
Have left the faintest trace
Of something we can hardly name,
But, still, must own it's there;
A something that in passing,
Has left our lives more fair.
And may there not, in meeting here,
Within this forest grand,
A friendship been cemented,
A friendship that will stand.
We meet, we part, we know not how,
Or when again we'll meet.
But there is, in forest friendship,
A something rare and sweet.
And may it be in after years,
These days you'll each recall,
And linger then with fondness
On the crowning scene of all.
The forest; with its stately trees,
So large and straight and grand,
A monument to friendship,
For in unity they stand.
Not a chord that is not vibrant
With harmony supreme;
Take them ever for your guidance.
Then you'll know what friendship means.
A Life Treasure, A Friend
A life treasure to me
Is my old friend indeed
They have been around
While others have gone underground.
That old friend is dependable
There is no one comparable
Through good times and bad
During the happy and the sad.
Memories that will be with me
Of old friends and being happy
Cherished times we have shared
Always with love and care.
But we should not forget
Nor should we regret
Making new friends also
Start by saying hello.
As new friends become old friends
With time passing by, one tends
To realize that new or old
Friends are truly gold!
Words of friendship for special occasions:
Loves You No Matter What
Who is that friend that loves you, no matters what
They would run through the mud, jump over a hut
Just to be with you
They love you, no matter what you do.
They say they are man's best friend
They will stand by your side to the end
They are always loyal and will protect you so
Doesn't matter if you are fast or slow.
So by now, you have figured out
And you may want to shout
A dog is man's best friend,
One who will stand with us to the end!
Around Your Heart
Friendship curls around your heart and joy replaces gloom,
It gives your life a sense of peace and calm.
It soothes the troubled mind where anxiety has ruled,
It comforts like a soothing, healing balm.
The curtain of despair that has threatened to devour
The very peace you tried so hard to find,
That has put your life on pause and subjected you to pain,
And has claimed each corner of your troubled mind.
Seems less painful when it’s shared with a friend who knows your heart,
On whose shoulder you can shed your many tears.
Who will never reprimand and repeat what you have said,
Who will help to heal your hurts and deepest fears.
Love Us Best
We may breast the waves of sorrow
That sometimes run mountain high,
See the hopes, we fondly cherish
Droop, and wither, fade and die
We may yearn for love and sympathy
To cheer us, as we go.
With weary footsteps over
Paths where thorns and roses grow,
But there's always this assurance
Soothes an aching, tired breast.
Friends that God has chosen for us,
Always seem to love us best.
'Tis the little cares and worries.
That in life go hand in hand,
And the little slights and troubles
That are hardest to withstand.
But the little streams of pleasure,
Dancing onward to the sea,
Make the life of all worth living
Even in adversity,
For the friendly hands that often
In our own are fondly pressed,
Made us sure that of all others,
They're the ones that love us best.
'Tis the little deeds of kindness
That we show to others here,
That shall bear the richest fruitage
When the harvest shall appear.
For the gentle word of sympathy
That cheers us on the way.
Makes the path thro' life seem brighter.
Helps to drive the clouds away.
And when life's bright rays are fading,
Like the sunset in the west,
Friends we meet in birthday greetings,
Always seem to love us best.
More poems about friendship:
Thank You, My Friend
I don't say it often enough
Maybe because I think I'm tough
But this thank you is long overdue
You are a great friend and I appreciate you!
We have had some wonderful times
Times I wouldn't trade for a million dimes
And then there have been times that are challenging too
But I could always depend on you.
So, my friend, I just want to say
Thank you, in every way
For being my friend each and every day
You are the best, you're more than okay!
Welcome My Friend
The world is filled
With all too few
Wonderful people
Like YOU!
My door is always open
You are always welcome here
Our friendship is golden
You, my friend, are so dear!
The Heart Of Friendship
Here's to the heart of friendship, tried and true,
That laughs with us when joys our pathway strew;
And kneels with us when sorrow, like a pall.
Enshrouds our stricken souls; then smiles through all
The midnight gloom with more than human faith.
Here's to the love that seeks not self, and hath
No censure for our frailty, but doth woo.
By gentle arts, our spirits back into
The way of truth; then sheds upon our lives
A radiance that all things else survives.
Upon The Sand
All love that has not friendship for its base,
Is like a mansion built upon the sand.
Though brave its walls as any in the land,
And its tall turrets lift their heads in grace;
Though skillful and accomplished artists trace
Most beautiful designs on every hand,
And gleaming statues in dim niches stand,
And fountains play in some flow'r-hidden place,
Yet, when from the frowning east a sudden gust
Of adverse fate is blown, or sad rains fall
Day in, day out, against its yielding wall,
Lo! the fair structure crumbles to the dust.
Love, to endure life's sorrow and earth's woe,
Needs friendship's solid mason-work below.
How Blessed I Am
Don't think a day goes by
When I stop and realize
How blessed I am
To have a friend like you
I appreciate your kindness
Your listening ear
When I tell you of my fears
You listen, you hear.
Appreciation for another
Especially like you, no other
Thanks my friend for always being there
Appreciation I do share!
Friends
Not he that counts my errors;
Not he that holds me back
With doubting words to show me
Wherein and how I lack;
Not he that sees my failings;
And, seeing them, is free
To take my measure by them —
He's not the friend for me.
But he that learns my virtues,
Who takes me at my best;
Who notes my greater failings
And overlooks the rest;
Who, after I have striven
And have not failed, is free
With words of commendation —
He is the friend for me.
He that forever warns me
Of dangers in my way.
Who doubts my strength to meet them
And ever bids me stay,
May truly seek to shield me.
May wish me well, but he
Whose faith is inspiration —
He is the friend for me.
Best A Friend Can Be
What is the best a friend can be
To any soul, to you or me?
Not only shelter, comfort, rest -
Inmost refreshment unexpressed;
Not only a beloved guide
To thread life's labyrinth at our side,
Or with love's torch lead on before;
Though these be much, there yet is more.
The best friend is an atmosphere
Warm with all inspirations dear,
Wherein we breathe the large, free breath
Of life that hath no taint of death.
Our friend is an unconscious part
Of every true beat of our heart;
A strength, a growth, whence we derive
God's health that keeps the world alive.
Do Not Keep
Do not keep the alabaster boxes of your love and
Tenderness sealed up until your friends are gone.
Fill their lives with sweetness.
Speak approving, cheering words while their ears can hear them,
And while their hearts can be thrilled and made happier by them.
The kind things you meant to say when they are gone,
Say before they go.
Send flowers to brighten and sweeten their homes
Before they leave them.
If my friends have alabaster boxes laid away,
Full of fragrant perfumes of sympathy and affection,
I would rather they would bring them out
In my weary and troubled hours, and open them,
That I may be refreshed and cheered while I need them.
More friendship poems:
Friendship
Friendship needs no studied phrases,
Polished face, or winning wiles;
Friendship deals no lavish praises,
Friendship dons no surface smiles.
Friendship follows Nature's diction,
Shuns the blandishments of Art,
Boldly severs truth from fiction,
Speaks the language of the heart.
Friendship favors no condition,
Scorns a narrow-minded creed,
Lovingly fulfills its mission,
Be it word or be it deed.
Friendship cheers the faint and weary,
Makes the timid spirit brave,
Warns the erring, lights the dreary,
Smooths the passage to the grave.
Friendship pure, unselfish friendship,
All through life's allotted span,
Nurtures, strengthens, widens, lengthens
Man's affinity with man.
Each Other
If we knew each other better,
You and I and all the rest,
Seeing down beneath the surface
To the sorrows all unguessed.
We would quit our cold complaining
And a hand of trust extend,
If we knew each other better.
We would count each one a friend.
Living Friendly
Life without the friendly greetin'
Of the folks I know so well,
Would be a lonely kind o' life,
Just an empty sort o' shell;
About all that I'm askin'
At the closin' of the day,
Is a chance to do my livin'
In a friendly sort o' way.
Friendship Is A Bond
Friendship is a bond that grows with time,
A treasure that's rare and hard to find,
It's honesty, trust, and empathy combined,
Through thick and thin, together we bind.
It doesn't matter how far apart we may be,
Or what life throws at you or me,
For our friendship will always be,
A source of strength and stability.
A Friend
In the hour of distress and misery the eye of
every mortal turns to friendship;
in the hour of gladness and conviviality,
what is your want? It is friendship.
When the heart overflows with gratitude,
or with any other sweet and sacred sentiment,
what is the word to which it would give utterance?
A friend.
Why Do We Wait?
Why do we wait till ears are deaf
Before we speak our kindly word,
And only utter loving praise
When not a whisper can be heard?
Why do we wait till hands are laid
Close-folded, pulseless, ere we place
Within them roses sweet and rare,
And lilies in their flawless grace?
Why do we wait till eyes are sealed
To light and love in death's deep trance -
Dear wistful eyes - before we bend
Above them with impassioned glance?
Why do we wait till hearts are still
To tell them all the love in ours,
And give them such late meed of praise,
And lay above them fragrant flowers?
Why do we, careless, wait till life's
Sweet opportunities are past,
And break our "alabaster box
Of ointment" at the very last!
Oh! let us heed the living friend
Who walks with us life's common ways,
Watching our eyes for look of love,
And hungering for a word of praise.
Friendship
How sweet it is when skies are gray,
And hope is slipping from your heart,
To have a friend come up and say:
"Cheer up, old man, I'll take your part."
When over the threshold of your home
Death's angel stalks and claims your bride;
How sweet it is within the gloam,
To know a friend is at your side.
But when your life is bright and gay,
And you are basking in success;
'Tis sweeter far to turn that day
To aid some brother in distress.
To a Friend
Upon the day that she was born
There bloomed a rose without a thorn
That grew more fair with Time;
A rare, rich blossom, and possessed
Of flowery splendor unexpressed
In either prose or rhyme!
The laughter of the meadow brook
And Summer's sunny smiles she took
And stored up in her heart
From whence they overflow and rise
And to her countenance and eyes
Their kindly charms impart!
O genteel friend with kindly face,
With sense and dignity and grace
And heart of temper true;
O noble Rose, sweet and benign,
May the great Sun ever shine
Benignantly on you!
Take Time For Friendship
How few take time for friendship!
How few plan for it! It is treated as a haphazard,
Fortuitous thing. May good luck send us friends;
We will not go after them.
May favoring fortune bind our friendships;
We will take no stitches ourselves.
Review yesterday, and all your yesterdays.
Did they open with any thought for friendship,
Its pursuit, its retention, its glorification?
Yet friendship requires painstaking.
No art is so difficult, no craft so arduous.
Roll a ball of clay and expect it to become a rose in your hand, but
Never expect an acquaintanceship, without care
And thought, to blossom into friendship.
No Friend Lost
Can friend lose friend? Believe it not!
The tissue whereof life is wrought,
Weaving the separate into one,
Nor end hath, nor beginning; spun
From subtle threads of destiny,
Finer than thought of man can see.
God takes not back his gifts divine;
While thy soul lives, thy friend is thine.
Short Poems About Friendship
Even in just a few lines, these short poems capture the beauty and importance of friendship. They remind us that true friends bring joy, support, and meaning to our lives.
Worthy Of My Friends
It is my joy in life to find
At every turning of the road,
The strong arm of a comrade kind
To help me onward with my load:
And since I have no gold to give,
And love alone must make amends,
My only prayer is, while I live, —
God make me worthy of my friends!
The Aged Friend
For life, with all its yields of joy and woe
And hope and fear - believe the aged friend -
Is just our chance o’ the prize of learning love;
How love might be, hath been indeed, and is;
And that we hold henceforth to the uttermost
Such prize despite the envy of the world.
And having gained truth, keep truth, that is all.
Hearts Thrive
Hearts only thrive on varied good;
And he who gathers from a host
Of friendly hearts his daily food;
Is the best friend that we can boast.
Behold A Friend
God never loved me in so sweet a way before,
’Tis He alone who can such blessings send,
And when His love would new expressions find,
He brought thee to me, and He said,
"Behold a friend."
A Real Friend
Honest men esteem and value nothing so much
in this world as a real friend.
Such a one is as it were another self,
to whom we impart our most secret thoughts,
who partakes of our joy, and
comforts us in our affliction;
add to this, that his company is
an everlasting pleasure to.
If I Could Make A Friend
If I today a friend could find
Amid the labor and the stress.
Some toiling brother, kindred mind.
Some hand to clasp in tenderness,
It would not matter what reward
The hours had brought me on the way
If I could say, "I thank Thee Lord -
I know I made a friend today."
Thy Friendship
Thy friendship like magic is nectar to me,
Distilled from the fountains of love;
May thy life a garden of beauty be.
In the beautiful land above.
A Friend Is Someone
A friend is someone
we turn to when our spirits need a life.
A friend is someone
we treasure for our friendship is a gift.
A friend is someone
who fills our lives with beauty, joy, and grace
And makes the world
we live in a better and happier place.
God Bless Thee Friend
'Tis sweet to feel friendship's warm glow,
When sorrow's tears from sad eyes flow;
When hearts with wounds are pierced by care
God bless thee friend, my earnest prayer.
Bond Of Friendship
In the depths of life's uncertain sea,
A bond of friendship, unbreakably.
Through storm and calm, we stand as one,
Sharing laughter, tears, and endless fun.
Grows Stronger
In the tapestry of life, we weave our threads,
Bound by laughter and tears, where love embeds.
Through trials and triumphs, hand in hand we steer,
Friendship's bond grows stronger year after year.
Shared Moments
Shared moments shape us, through storms and sun,
Our hearts intertwined, together we've won.
In joy or sorrow, come what may, forever will mend,
For in shared experiences, our friendship finds its blend.
No Need To Pretend
In the heart of true friendship, there's no need to pretend,
For in each other's company, souls find a perfect blend.
Acceptance flows like a gentle stream, embracing every scar,
For true friends rejoice in who we are.
No Need To Change
In the embrace of true friendship, there's no need to change,
We find solace in our differences, a bond that will never wane.
In the mosaic of life, we stand side by side, near and far,
For true friends accept us for who we are.
With Trust
With trust, a friendship that never ends,
A treasure found in fate's amends.
An unbreakable bond that's tried and true,
Forever linked, me and you.
Holds Us Tight
Friendship, the bond that holds us tight,
Built on loyalty and trust so bright.
In good times and bad, we stand together,
Our faith in each other will last forever.
With Honesty And Love
With honesty and love, we pave the way,
For a lasting, meaningful friendship every day.
United by trust, our hearts intertwine,
In this beautiful friendship of yours and mine.
So True And Kind
Oh my dear friend, so true and kind,
Your presence brings such joy to mind.
The laughter and the love we share,
Lifts me up with such loving care.
Shines A Light
From bright days to dark of night,
Your friendship shines a light, so warm and bright.
Forever grateful for our endless bond,
In your friendship, I've struck gold so fond.
Famous Poems About Friendship
Conclusion
Friends new and old can influence
and impact us in positive ways. We hope this poetry expresses your thoughts
for your friends and that
you will share them with the special people in your life that you consider your friends.
You may also want to read our collection of quotes for a friend
or share one of our meaningful friendship quotes.
The relationship we have with our friends is a unique one; with our friends, we share excitement, trust, forgiveness, and joy.
We experience
happy times and unhappy times. But the one thing that is consistent with a
friend is no matter what the situation they are there for you. We hope you have found a short poem to share with your friends.
Back to Short Poems & Quotes to Encourage and Inspire