I'm happy that + to be

[Mikio91]

Hello,

"I'm happy that you're my friend."

I always have a hard time figuring out how to use 'to be' in a Japanese subordinate clause. I guess "I'm happy to / that..." translates to [verb in -て + うれしい]. So how can I do?

My attempt:
<友達の名前>が友達でうれしいです。

 

[Toritoribe]

Yes, that's good. You can also say <友達の名前>が友達でいてくれてうれしい.

 

[Mikio91]

Thank you, Toritoribe-san. Could you briefly shed some light on いてくれて for me please? I found this thread but my Japanese is kinda too weak for me to understand everything "^^ What nuance does it add to the meaning?

 

[Toritoribe]

～てくれる means "to give me a favor of doing", thus, 友達でいてくれる literally means "you give me the favor of your being my friend". It's the same usage as ～てくれてありがとう.