Ideal Friendship In Girl Who Loved Her Horses By Drew Hayden Taylor

Ideal friendships are often based on the concept of time. For instance, society considers prime friendships to be those where individuals know each other for a long time or spend valuable time and cherishing moments with. This ideology is universal across many diverse communities globally. In the story, “Girl Who Loved Her Horses", written by Drew Hayden Taylor, the ideal viewpoint of a friendship is broken. Danielle, Shelley, William, and Ralph demonstrate this unique friendship throughout the story where the period you have known an individual, whom you spend the most time with, or simply who is of higher 'class' or 'status' as you do not matter. The pillars of friendship, including trust, communication, and empathy, are the traits that enhance

In the story, Shelley and Ralph demonstrate their empathy for Danielle after learning about her background and current parental situation. They find out about her abusive household and instantly begin to try to help and support Danielle through everything through empathy. For example, after Danielle shows up at Ralph and Shelley’s home soaking wet, she tells them about her traumatizing childhood and her reasoning behind drawing the magnificent horse. After a long conversation, Shelley and Ralph realize that Danielle is still wet from the cold rain and shivering. Ralph asks Shelley, “Should I get a blanket?” (Taylor 174), to which Shelley responds to him with, “I’ll get it [blanket]…Maybe there's something [clothing] in there that would fit you…” (Taylor 175). These direct quotations from the play inform that although Shelley and Ralph never had to help Danielle, they still did because they wanted to and had empathy. This act of kindness along with so many others, allowed them to build a stable friendship base with Danielle because it helped Danielle realize that she had people to care for her selflessly. Moreover, another quotation that exemplifies empathy in “Girl Who Loved Her Horses” is when Shelley, Ralph, and William find Danielle after being missing for two days and talk to her about what her current home situation is like. After finding out that Danielle’s mom is moving to Toronto with her boyfriend, Danielle explains to Shelley, William, and Ralph how she would like to stay with Shelley and Ralph because her mom’s boyfriend scares her. This is when Shelley says to Danielle, “Your mom said no [To staying with Shelley and Ralph]. We tried everything…Mom tried with the Children’s Aid Society, the band office, everything. Nobody would help.” (Taylor 179). This statement said