We've all been in a situation where we've been given an option of yes or no. Sometimes it's easier than other times to give an answer. For example, the question "do you want ice cream," almost always guarantees an immediate answer of "yes!" But, other times the answer isn't so clear-cut, or sometimes we have to say no, even if we don't want to. It's such a small word, you'd think it would be easy to say. The truth is, no is actually a bigger word than you think, and saying no is not always easy.
Say your friend asks you to do a favor you really don't want to do. You're put on the spot, so what do you say? You want to say no, but in the moment you panic and say "Uhhh...yes?" But really, you meant to say no. Saying no to friends is especially hard because you don't want to let them down. You don't want to just give a flat out "no" and walk away. The thing is, we need to feel comfortable to say no to our friends. After all, friends are the people that you hang out with because they understand you and you feel comfortable with them. So if you need to say no, they should understand. But sometimes, saying no can save your life, so you should always feel comfortable to say no to them in life-threatening scenarios.
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Let's take a more serious example of saying no to a friend. Let's say you're out with your friends at a party and guess what? Someone spiked the punch, and your unknowing friend drinks some... actually, more like five glasses. This same friend also drove you to the party and you don't have your license yet. So, what do you do? Not to turn this into some lesson straight out of your health one class, but this is a serious issue that frequently happens. You don't say no and hop in the car, basically gambling whether you get home safe or not. You'd think that you should say no, right? But people say yes. This is a scenario you need to feel comfortable saying no in. Your life is more important than a friendship in this scenario.
The point is, saying no sometimes can be hard, but in all honesty, must be done sometimes. Saying no to a friend is never easy, no matter what the scenario. They say "honesty is the best policy," so think of it this way: would you rather be honest with your friends, or lie to them? And if you don't feel comfortable being honest with them, is your friendship really worth it? It's something to think about the next time you find yourself saying no.
"Lord, show me how to say no to this, I don't know how to say no to this..." Hamilton, "Say No to This"
