Tonight with your 13 to 17 year old
The prompt
“What makes a friendship worth keeping even when it gets hard?”
What to listen for
If they describe things like honesty, effort, or showing up even after a fight, they have a mature, resilient view of friendship, and they trust that real bonds can survive conflict, not just avoid it.
If they say a friendship isn't worth keeping once it gets hard, that might reflect a recent hurt rather than a fixed belief, stay curious about what prompted that view rather than debating it.
A specific friend's name coming up is worth just listening to, without asking too many follow-up questions that turn this into an interrogation about that person.
What this tells you
What they think makes a friendship worth the effort shows you what they need to feel truly secure in their closest relationships.