“You will never be completely at home again, because part of your heart will always be somewhere else. That is the price you pay for the richness of loving and knowing people in more than one place.”-Miriam Adeney
Having traveled a fair bit, spending four months in London studying abroad, I’ve met people from many places. I have friends in Australia, England, and all across America. There’s something so pure about long distance friendships. I find they’re deeper and sincerer, because they’re not people you see every day so there has to be a mutual desire to keep the friendship strong. At times they’re daunting and difficult when having to match up schedules for a Facetime date or simply replying to texts after work when it’s already 2am in England.
The benefits of having friends sprinkled all over the world often outweigh the negatives. For instance, you have an excuse to travel to places you may have never been. Wherever they live, you can visit and explore a new city or return to one you already love. In my opinion, you can learn more about the world since they’re from a different culture which by default, you learn about and accept. It can open your eyes to things you never even thought of. It’s also fun to compare and contrast your respective countries. It’s such a learning experience knowing people in other places.
Obviously, there comes some negatives when you have friends all over the globe, even just all over the country. One of the hardest things I’ve experienced is not being able to call them and say “Come outside let’s go get ______.” You can only FaceTime them and pretend they’re there. Another difficulty is time zones. Time zones are the bane of my existence. One of my best friends lives in London and another in Los Angeles. After 7pm, the friend in London is fast asleep but the one in LA is only just really starting their evening. It’s a pain. It’s always funny when you haven’t gone to sleep and 3am rolls around and your London friends are all waking up to start their day. Simply put, time zones are horrific. Another negative is the cost of flights to these places. They’re outrageous unless you book a year in advance, of course. Makes travelling to see your friend difficult.
All in all, friendship come in many shapes, sizes, and distances. If you’re lucky, you have friends in many different places (even if it’s just around your country). It makes life exciting, adventurous and truly makes you a better friend. Although distance is often very, very difficult, I wouldn’t trade my long distance friendships for anything in the world.
