The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times

Obama shares that she takes her friendships seriously and ensures that she has regular meet-ups with her friends. She credits her friends with helping keep her life and emotions in balance, and she feels that reliable friendships make people happier and more successful. She praises her friends for giving her “emotional shelter, good humor, and a communal energy” (122) that helped her through difficult times. She claims that close friends also helped her marriage because she and her husband both rely on their friends, rather than only burdening each other. Obama recalls how much she relied on her friends for moral support during the nerve-wracking period of upheaval after her husband’s election as she adjusted to living in Washington, DC, and becoming First Lady. She continued to put effort into maintaining her friendships, despite increasing demands on her time and more geographical distance between her and her friends.

The author notes that many people find it difficult to make new friends and cites research that found that a third of Americans have fewer than three close friends, while about 10% don’t have any. She argues that this loneliness can take a toll on people’s emotional health and encourages others to forge genuine connections outside social media.