As someone who has been raised by parents who immigrated to America, I've lived with the fact that my entire extended family is on the other side of the ocean. I get to see them once a year for two weeks and the rest of the year is Skype calls, phone conversations, and text messages. I watch my mom and dad call their siblings every day, even when it's the middle of the night in the U.S. or the early hours of the morning in Russia. So when I finally got the chance to go to Moscow, after all the phone communication, it felt like no time had passed between my cousins and me.
Our bond had only strengthened after living with each other, traveling to different cities and having big family dinner barbecues every single night. To have a family who lives in a different country is the definition of unbreakable bonds of love. My cousins will get up early in the morning, stay up late and call me between classes just so we can catch up on each other's lives. They will call me on their lunch break during school if something bad happened to me and I needed advice.
Even if we're an 8-hour flight and 7-hour time difference apart, they are still the closest people I have to siblings.
My family has always been about dedication, I've always been taught to keep up my relationships and friendships, no matter the distance between us. When I started going to summer camp every year, I made friends who live anywhere from two hours away to others who live nine hours away. I started making weekend trips down to New Jersey once a month to see them, and before we all left for college, we had one big last reunion for the summer. During every break, as soon as we came home, we immediately got together to catch up over breakfast.
I moved away to college to follow my dreams and start a new life away from everyone I've ever known, but I never lost contact with my friends back home.
They have been there for me through every difficult time and supported me throughout all my accomplishments and disappointments. While we don't get to see each other every month like we used to, this time apart has strengthened our friendships. Because nothing beats the feeling of arriving at St.Herman's conference over Christmas break to get out of the car and see my roommates running across the parking lot to tackle me as soon as I get out of the car after 4 long months apart.
Everyone is screaming, hugging and laughing with excitement because we can't believe we're seeing each other in real life again.
I left for college feeling insecure and scared that my relationships with everyone from my high school years wouldn't stand the distance, but instead, I saw that I have the greatest support group behind my back who has eagerly welcomed me back home every time with open arms. And it speaks volumes about the type of people we should surround ourselves with.
We want to maintain friendships and relationships with those who will love us even if we choose to move 511 miles away to college, or new friends who open their home to you over the summer to visit before school starts again.
I've made friendships here in Ohio that for once in my life, unlike high school, will last into the summer and become closer as each year goes on, because these people will gladly take a bus for the entire day to stay with me for a couple weeks because we can't handle spending four months away from each other. These are the types of relationships that teach you about dedication and the lengths others will go to be with you.
Because it's not about how far or close you are to each other in distance but at heart. I had friends who used to live nine hours away from me in high school until I committed to Ohio and realized that my best friend of five years can finally drive up to see me for the weekend for a sleepover, which is something we used to only wish would happen. Now, it's a reality.
We've become closer and finally get to have those weekend road trips, joining their families to celebrate Pascha and be each other's wedding dates. The most important thing to us was that those nine hours never affected our friendships. Even though we have reunions several times a year, that time is still so precious to us because we weren't lucky to have that more than once a year and now we cherish it.
If you love someone, you'll find a way to make it work.
