Sticking around when it’s convenient is easy. The friendships worth having are the ones you kept when it wasn’t.

Anyone can be around for the good stretch, when it costs nothing and there is something in it for them. The friendships that turn out to matter are the ones somebody kept going through the boring, awkward or expensive part. That is where the real information lives, because convenience makes everybody look loyal. You find out who is which without warning.

Think about who stayed the last time things were hard for you, and tell them you remember. Then do the unglamorous version for someone else: the ride nobody wants to give, the long call, the afternoon that costs you your plans. Bad weather is the whole test.