Laughter is not a bad beginning for a friendship, and it is the best ending for one.

Shared amusement is a fast way of learning whether two people see the world similarly, which is why so many friendships begin there. The second half is the sharper observation: when a friendship has run its course, laughing together one last time is a better exit than a grievance or a slow fade. Not everything has to end badly in order to be over. Some connections simply finish, and how they finish is the part you keep.

If a friendship is quietly ending, consider letting it end warmly rather than by neglect. One good afternoon with no agenda. What you remember afterwards will be that, rather than the drifting.