Transitioning from high school to college is a big change. College is full of new opportunities, new adventures, and new friends. It’s a whole new world. Sometimes we can get caught up in the excitement of all the new friends and that we make and people that we meet that we find it difficult to keep up with our high school friends, especially those that go different schools than we do.
After going through the ups and downs of high school, friends share a special bond. We make promises to be at each other’s weddings, spend New Year’s Eve together, and always be there for each other in time of need. Upon graduation, our greatest fear may be the fear of growing apart. College doesn’t have to be the end of the valuable friendships that we’ve made during the first eighteen of our lives. In fact, it’s a perfect time to mature these relationships so that they can last for a lifetime.
Some of my friends from high school attend the same university as me, some are at a university near my hometown, and a few others enrolled in universities out of state. Finding time to get together or even just talk is not as easy as it used to be. With schoolwork, clubs and organizations, and work taking up much of our time, it can even be difficult to keep up with high school friends that go to college with us. We really have to make an effort to have coffee, grab lunch, or even study together to keep in touch and show that we value each other’s friendship.
Keeping up with my friends at other universities can be more challenging, especially those who go to school out of state. Luckily, we live in a time where it’s incredibly easy to instantly get in touch with someone through texting, calling, or even video calls. When it comes to my friends out of state, I make an effort to contact them regularly. When they go back home for holidays or breaks, I make time to go home and see them. To stay close to my friends that go a university near my hometown, I keep in contact with them almost every day, and when I go home for weekends or breaks, we schedule a time to get together and catch up.
Friendship is a treasure, so it’s important to cherish all of our friendships, even when distance separates us. College life presents itself with a multitude of amazing new opportunities and adventures, but we shouldn’t forget the friends who laughed with us, cried with us and shared those awkward high school moments with us. So pick up the phone and give a call or send a text to a friend you haven’t seen or talked to in awhile. You’ll be glad that you did.
