Picture this - it’s morning and if you’re like me, you roll over to grab your phone to turn off your alarm. Some mornings, there’s a lot to look through when I first open my phone and others there really aren’t. But there is one mainstay that has been happening for the last few years and that is that I have texts from friends from around the world, all who have been chatting throughout my night (their days) and I get to look through their conversations and chime in when I’ve caught up. Group chats rule, people. I have always been a social person, just ask anyone who has known me for any length of time at any point in my life. I have also had a wide range of acquaintances and a good amount of friends. In 2010, I took a trip to Italy that changed my life, for the better. I met some fantastic people who I am still friends with today. Thus began my network of friends around the world. In 2013, I became a fan of a British boyband (you miiiiight have heard of them) and that expanded my global friendship network wider than I ever thought possible.

Social media is a powerful tool to connect with people. It’s also a great tool to form friendships. I mentioned my friends in different countries to my boss once, and when he learned that I haven’t actually met a lot of them in person, he was curious how a friendship could possibly form over social media. It starts out with a common interest and you chat about that until you’re blue in the face. Then you start seeing your Twitter friends talking about their other interests and you realize that those interests align with yours so you discuss that and before you know it, you’re figuring out time zones and texting back and forth. In my case, it was the love of a band who brought me together with people from far and wide. Suddenly I had a whole Twitter community of people who loved what I loved. Now, although the band is still a popular topic, I can talk (and do talk) to these friends about anything and everything.

There are many benefits to having a global network of friends, but I’d like to point out two. If I’m having a bad day or a weird day or just want to talk to someone, any time of day, I know that there’s someone I can reach out to who will most likely be awake. That’s the perk of having friends in time zones that are nine or ten hours ahead of you. I’ve also found friends who are in the same area as me. Because of my online community, I had friends in my new city that I wouldn’t have met otherwise - I even moved in with one of them this past week! It’s crazy to think that without this simple social media tool, I might not have met some of the most important people in my life. Another benefit of having friends around the country and around the world is that I’ve made a wishlist of places to visit. It seems silly to talk to someone in Indiana and say “hmm you’re in the same country as me, but I’ve never been there….we should meet up!” Of course, unless you have a disposable income, you’re not making a lot of trips whilly nilly (again, a topic for another time). However, I have a bucket list full of places like New York, Indiana, Chicago, Colorado in the States, and then France, England, Canada, Portugal, Brazil, New Zealand, Australia, and many places in between worldwide.

Now, I’ve heard the skeptical arguments over “internet friends” - my parents could not grasp it for a while. At that same time, my mom had been encouraging me to try online dating (that’s yet another topic for another time), so I put it to her this way - if I could meet a guy online, why couldn’t I meet friends online? She thought about it, still thought it was a bit strange, but agreed that, yeah, it’s about the same concept. I’ve had much more success in finding internet friends than I have making a love connection though. And I’m thankful for that.

I have a network of strong, female friends that I can constantly lean on. Say what you will, but female friendship is one of the most powerful things in the world. My life is better for the friendships I’ve made “on the internet” and I wouldn’t change them for the world.