The words "Best Friend" become refined.

What is a best friend? Like, really?
Everyone throws that term around just as much as they throw the word "love" like a tennis ball.
I would like to think I've had quite a few, but since the definition seems to change as years (or months) pass by, I don't know anymore.
There's an obvious statement I am about to make: that only Jesus can be my 100% true best friend.
I know that.
What stumps me is this best friend thing.
Honestly, though, I personally see a best friend as being someone you are able to tell everything about yourself to, and do so on those late nights walking on the beach or drinking coffee in Starbucks.
I think I should make a list of all the things I think the term "best friend" equals.

-Honesty is crucial. True friendship can afford true knowledge. It does not depend on darkness and ignorance.
-Enjoying each other's compay is a key factor in any relationship. And if it's your "best friend," I think you are supposed be able to be stupid and silly around each other and not feel weird.
-Love. I really should have put this first. I believe you cannot truly love someone unless you have seen EVERY side of them. Good mood, bad mood, heartbroken, ecstatic, angry... etc. Because THAT is when you know who you are really dealing with. And with love comes things like patience, care, commitment, and forgiveness. It seems a sin to group those big words into one category, but I really do not want to bore anyone.
-Understanding. I think one main reason I've called people my best friend, past or present, is because I thought they truly understood me and my feelings (and most of the time they did). I think that someone who is called your best friend should be able to tell there's something wrong without without you even saying anything. So many times I hear of people, or experienced firsthand, how "so-and-so just doesn't get me."
If you want to BE a best friend, you HAVE to put yourself in other's shoes. I find myself doing this without thinking. My parents say I have a "gift" for personally experiencing other people's pain. I think they call that compassion these days.
-With understanding comes listening. I have been told for years I'm a great listener... but I've also been told I talk too much. Sometimes, you don't want someone to always tell you what to do, but you just want someone's unclogged ear, focused eyes, and open mind.
-Inside Jokes. Have you ever heard of a pair of best friends that didn't have inside jokes? I find that these are probably one of my most favorite things about relationships. Laughing can be put in this category. And laughing really is the best medicine.
-Acceptance. This is probably one of the most important part of a close friendship. It's also made me realize why so many relationships haven't worked out in the past. Either they didn't accept me and I was always trying to meet their approval, or I put too much dependence on them being everything I expected.
What it comes down to, really, is seeing someone naked and loving them anyways (not literally, obviously, but feel free to make that journey on your own...) Someone once said to me, "You're my best friend because you accept me no matter what." I told them, sincerely, "I always will."

So, if all of that amounts to the status of "best friend," why are there so many people who have "backstabbing" BFFS or, like, 3574309572 best friends? How can everyone be all those things to so many people, anyways? Should a best friend be singular, or can you have oodles?
Personally, I think you really can't have, like, 12 true best friends. That seems like overload. Surely, you can have as many great friends as you want. But a best friend, like BEST, is someone who rises above the crowd. They don't exactly get more of your love, but they are the person(s) who accepts you, is there for you, and loves you no matter what.

If I think really hard about it, I could say that currently I have tons of great friends.
But, best friends?
That's the question.
Where do you draw a line? Is it when someone else calls you their BFF first?
Is it when someone meets your expectations, or when they rise above them?
Are you not meant to divide your friends up in categories? Not that I do, neccesarily...

I know for certain Sarah Magill is and has been and will be my best friend. I've known her for 13 years. And even if we don't hang out all the time or see each other alot, when we do nothing has changed. We pick up right from where we left off.

PBA has supplied me with many awesome friends. I really do consider many of them "best friends."
Is that wrong? Does it really matter?
How can someone have so many? What makes certain people out of your class of "best friends" more special, though? Is it a sin to favor certain people over others? I think it is...

I've kept some "best friends" from 8th grade and 9th grade. But is the status "best friend" an eternal state of being or is there a point where your old best friend "deactivates?"

Maybe I'm thinking about this too much. I would like someone to share their opinions though...