The word friend has become corrupt in a world of social media likes and follows.

• Does anyone actually have 50 friends, or 100 or thousands? Or are they followers, interlopers, outliers?
• Imagine if you could see your friends in a lineup like the police use to identify suspects. Who would you choose out of that lineup?

Separating friends who you would readily identify keeps things real.

Knowing who deserves your time, interest and love is a big step toward valuing something that has become devalued in the digital age.

Bolstering friendships doesn’t take a police lineup, but it does involve making a choice.