Moving away to go to school was exciting. A whole new chapter in my life was about to be written, but there were a few things I didn’t want to leave behind. I was blessed with friends that have stuck with me through everything. Unfortunately, those friends couldn’t follow me to wherever life had planned for me. Now, here are some things I have learned to adjust to the struggles of maintaining a long distance friendship;
1. You don’t have to talk every day.
The biggest lesson I’ve learned from keeping a long distance friendship is I don’t have to talk to them every day to know they care. This is the biggest thing you have to face when caring about your friends. Over time you get busy and they have lives that don’t directly involve you, and coming to terms that they can’t always take the time to text or call you back in the short 24 hours given. Understanding this will in turn make your friendship stronger.
2. There is no bad time to send a text.
It may be 1 am or 3 pm, if it’s on your mind, it will always be okay to send. You can always say what’s on your mind, when it’s on your mind and they can come back to it later. You know that they may not always reply right away, but you know they will get back to you as soon as they can.
3. Every conversation has a purpose.
You learn quickly, your time is limited. Even when texting, you don’t want to waste your time talking about nothing. When you receive a text from them, you know there is a point to it. You even skip the guessing step, you ask a question and send your answer all in one. Putting all your thoughts into one message or a string of a few saves you and them time in their busy lives.
4. They are a third party analyzer.
When things seem confusing in your life, you know they will always be ready to give you advice. Since they aren’t there, they can give you an opinion outside of your normal environment. This helps you find a perspective when things seem a little blurred. When in your own world, it easy to lose sight of the real world’s reality and they give you the helping hand to guide you on taking a step back from the situation.
5. Seeing them is an event.
Living away from your friend means having to travel to see them. It’s always exciting when you get to see them. It usually starts with lots of planning and communication on both ends. It could even be months in advance, but you have to schedule everything. After making an itinerary, you start a countdown until you see each other next. Then, you usually scrap everything within the first few hours of seeing each other, but a lot of the fun went into making those plans.
6. Snapchat is a main form of communication.
In this generation, we have the luxury of technology. With apps like Skype, FaceTime and Snapchat, we can be in touch and see each other all in one. The downfall with the video conference apps is the same issue you run into with calling someone, you both have to be free at the same time. With Snapchat, you can send a video or picture of your life and they can open any time they have the chance. You never have to miss the big events or the small ones again!
I have learned quite a bit from my friends over the years. By moving away, I have learned even more about life and how it isn’t always fair. The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that your friends can’t always live in the same city as you, but with the help of technology, a simple understanding, and pure will power, staying friends isn’t difficult. Some friendships are just meant to last.
