As we sit about a month away from Thanksgiving break the sinking feeling of being away from my best friends from high school is hitting harder than ever. It’s already been two months, and I never would have imagined it would be this hard.
At the end of senior year it didn’t seem like leaving my friends would be so difficult. We would each get to go off on our own and start our new lives! We’d visit each other all the time! We’d text in our group chat at least once a week with updates on how our college life is! Only, it doesn’t quite go like that.
I go off to start my own life only to realize how dependent I am on my friends from home. I miss them more than I thought possible. I miss their familiarity. And as much as I’d like to hop on a plane on a moments notice and go see my friends it just isn’t realistic. I miss being able to call my friends and have them come over to see me in the blink of an eye. I try so hard to keep in touch with them, but lets face it, we’re all really busy. I think about my friends all the time and I tell myself I’m going to text them later but then things come up and before I know it it’s been a week or two before I remember to call them. I miss being able to just say to myself “oh, it’s ok, I’ll see him/her in school tomorrow”.
As much as being in long distance relationships with my best friends sucks, it’s better to look at the glass half full. Seeing the things my best friends are doing through Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat makes every day a little bit easier. The limitless amount of pictures I get to look through never ceases to put a smile on my face because let’s face it- if you’re happy, I’m happy. Seeing everything you guys are accomplishing at school makes me feel like a proud momma. FaceTiming, texting, and calls from you guys have me laughing so hard I cry. Little things I see around every day remind me of memories we’ve had and it feels like home. At the end of the day, as hard as not being together is, I love knowing I always have someone to call at any given moment.
But let’s face it. Friendship is not defined by how often we see each other, or even by how often we talk to each other. As cheesy as it sounds, friendship truly is defined by the bonds we share even over unfortunately long distances. I do not feel any less close to my high school friends as I did on graduation day. In fact, if anything I feel closer to them. I feel closer to them knowing that even while they’re off starting their lives and I’m here starting mine, they still think of me. I feel closer to them knowing that my name in their phone is still whatever inside joke we set it as in high school. I feel closer to them knowing that they’re just as excited to do a running hug the first time we see each other over Thanksgiving break (and probably every time until we go back to school). So, with all of that being said, the countdown has begun until my heart feels whole again.
