Love is not only about romantic ones. Sometimes love can also be found in your friends. My Amanda, starring Piolo Pascual as Fuffy/TJ and Alessandra de Rossi as Fream/Amanda, revolves around two best friends and their journey to love, life, and heartbreak.

Fuffy and Fream’s story is a wonderful pick for anybody seeking a movie to watch over the weekend or for a sanity break. They will not only teach you the value of friendship and how to cherish your friends more, but they will also teach you lessons about love.

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Here are some lessons about friendship and love that you can learn from watching My Amanda:

WARNING: MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!

1. Respect your friend’s personal life.

“Kasama mo ako palagi. Pag nagkamali ka, sabay nating itama. Kung madapa ka, aalalayan kita hanggang makabangon ka. At kung ‘di mo na kaya, aakayin kita.” – TJ

Ang kaibigan, kaibigan lang. Huwag maging toxic tulad ng ex mo.

Relationships will be burdened with hardship and disappointment if they are not treated with respect. Others will not respect us if we do not respect them, and we will not be respected by others if we do not respect ourselves.

You should not be manipulative of your friend’s life. Let them make their own decisions, if they experience defeat, be there for them. Giving some advice is acceptable, but meddling too much in your friend’s personal life can be toxic.

Remember that before you met and became friends, you each had your own lives to live.

Fuffy and Fream value each other’s lives in the same way. When Fuffy wanted to date a new girl, Fream respected his decision. Fream was escorted down the aisle by Fuffy during her wedding to give her hand to her husband.

If you want your friendship or love connection to endure, respect is essential.

2. Be vocal and do not pretend.

“Kahit anong hingin mo, ibibigay ko sa’yo, dahil ikaw ang aking lahat. Ikaw ang buwan at araw ko, ang tanging ilaw sa gabing madilim.” – TJ

Buksan mo ang iyong puso at ang iyong sarili, huwag matakot magmahal muli.

Let your friends discover your true self. In that way, they can learn how to approach you in certain situations.

Fuffy and Fream’s relationship is so strong that only by looking at each other’s faces, they know if something is wrong.

Fream is also seen to be quite direct with Fuffy throughout the film; her actions and words are unfiltered. Similarly, to Fuffy, despite Fream’s constant demonstrations of devotion for him, Fuffy still has no interest in her.

They don’t pretend to be someone they are not, which most friends, even lovers, should have. You should always feel at ease around your friend or partner. If that’s not the case, you might want to reconsider your relationship.

3. Be supportive of each other.

“Kung dumating ang araw na makahanap ka ng bagong pag-ibig, hindi kita pipigilan. Ingatan mo lang ang sarili mo. Sino man ang mahanap mo, alagaan ka sana niya tulad ng pag-alaga ko sa’yo. Iisa lang ang puso mo. ‘Wag kang pumayag na mawasak ito.” – TJ

Hindi lang jowa ang dapat sinusuportahan, kaibigan din.

Support your friends through their endeavors and offer solace during their defeats.

In this scene, Fuffy backs up Fream’s wish to perform Chaka Khan’s “Through the Fire.” Although Fream continually talks about and listens to it, Fuffy continues to support her because he understands that by doing so, Fream will be able to relieve her pain and find solace following her heartbreak.

Similarly, Fream backs Fuffy up in his decisions. Fream supported Fuffy with his buy-and-sell business, comforted him after his break-up with his girlfriend, and even took Fuffy’s hamster back from Marie, one of Fuffy’s ex-girlfriends.

But, one of the greatest examples of this lesson that you can find in the film is when Fuffy still supported Fream with her decision to marry Kelvin, even though Fuffy knows that Kelvin is not a good choice for Fream.

Fuffy simply smiled when Inang, Fream’s grandmother, revealed to him that he is the man she is praying for Fream. He was just overjoyed that his best buddy was getting married.

4. A friendship between the opposite sex is possible.

“Tinig mong walang katulad. Kung mundo ay karagatan, ang tinig mo ay alon na patuloy na dumarating sa akin, minsan malakas, minsan mahina, pero palaging masarap pakinggan. Kailanman ay hindi pagsasawaan. Sa panahong ang alon na ito ay may dalang bigat, iniisip ko, habang nakatingin sa ‘yo, “Paano ko pagagaanin ang mundo mo?”” – TJ

Hindi lahat ng lalaki tulad ng ex mong manloloko.

Break the stereotype that guys and girls cannot be best friends.

Although this is a fictitious narrative, Fuffy and Fream demonstrated that a man and a woman may be best friends as long as they have a platonic connection. Even though they have been friends for a long time, they have no sexual attraction to one another. They value their relationship and friendship over everything else because they have respect for each other.

5. Consider your mind’s judgment, not only your heart’s desires.

“Lahat tayo malayang mag-isip, mangarap at umibig. Kung saan ka masaya, doon ka. Huwag kang matakot. ‘Di ka nag-iisa. Puwede ka magtiwala at kumapit sa akin. Palagi kitang babantayan anuman ang mangyari.” – TJ

Huwag puro puso. Gamitin din ang utak. Huwag maging alipin ng pag-ibig.

Learn when to stop and when to continue.

Despite Kelvin’s negative acts and red flags, Fream persisted to marry him.

Because you love someone so much, sometimes your decisions are twisted; you can’t tell what’s right and what’s wrong, and you ignore the red flags that are waving because you love them.

This is the time to trust your head and put your heart’s aspirations on the sidelines. Not everything your heart desires is right or good for you. You may need to examine which part of you should make decisions in certain situations.

6. Friends look out for each other.

“Aaminin ko, minsan ‘di ko alam kung ano’ng gagawin ko, paano kita patatahanin. Sapat na bang samahan at tabihan ka? Eto lang ang maipapangako ko sa ‘yo, kapag nalungkot ka, mararamdaman ko agad. Kapag tinawag mo ako, nariyan ako agad. ‘Di mo pa sinasabi, papunta na ako sa iyong tabi. ‘Di mo pa alam na marami na akong sulat na nagawa para sa ‘yo. Balang araw, mababasa mo rin.” – TJ

Masarap din marinig ang “nandito lang ako lagi para sa’yo,” pero mas masarap kung sasamahan mo ng gawa ang salita.

The most heartbreaking scene. MAJOR SPOILER AHEAD. You have been warned.

After Fream’s death, Fuffy took the initiative to take care of Fream’s child, even though he has no obligations towards Little Amanda.

This shows how genuine Fuffy’s love for Fream is. He is willing to take charge and rise to the challenge of being a parent. He even made a book for Little Amanda telling how much her mother loves her and how genuine she is as a person.

Friends should always have each other’s backs. It may not be as huge as what Fuffy did for Fream, but the small gestures you can do for your friends are important.