I hope people reading this have never had to experience maintaining a long distance friendship, because let me tell you, it is the hardest thing I have faced in college. I don’t say that in the sense that I feel my relationship has wavered. I’m more saying that every time I’m reminded about the distance between me and some of my closest friends, I die a little inside. However, maintaining those friendships is undoubtedly worth it and I couldn’t imagine my life without these people. With that being said though, here are some struggles we’ve had to face to survive the long months without each other.
Not being just a 15-minute drive away
This is definitely the struggle you realize instantly. As soon as you get all moved in to your new place, you automatically want to go check out your best friend’s new place too. Sadly though, if you’re like me, that could often mean hours of driving in the car or possibly even a plane ride. No more spontaneous trips or last minute plans.
Being jealous of their new friends
You’re happy that they’re happy. That’s all you want! But with that being said… you’re a little peeved that they’ve already moved on so quickly to a new group of best friends. You find yourself stalking their social media and silently wishing that was you in that Instagram next to your best friend.
Phone call scheduling
Being in two different places and potentially in two different time zones means you have to plan EVERYTHING. And that includes phone calls, FaceTimes, and Skypes. You both have very different schedules and now you’ve got to schedule when you can get in that 10 minute phone call. After all, every second counts when it comes to staying connected to your best friends.
Always being one step behind on the drama or gossip
Wait, she went out with who? I thought you said that he transferred. Oh, wait, I’m thinking about the other guy. Hold on, what are we talking about again? We all lead complex lives and keeping up to date on your best friends’ lives can be a struggle when you’re not experiencing exactly what they're experiencing.
Not being able to be there for them
This is the one that perhaps sucks the most. When your best friend is truly feeling down and needs you, it’s hard to be hundreds of miles apart. Not being able to be there to physically to give a reassuring hug or a shoulder to cry on is probably the worst part about long distance friendships.
With all these negatives though, there are a few positives I would like to mention.
Their friends become your friends
I mentioned being jealous of your besties’ new friends? Well, let’s be real. You FaceTime and call so often that their friends start to know you by name and eventually, they become your friends too. It’s bound to happen when you’re mutually connected through such an amazing guy or gal.
Snapchats
Snapchat was a lovely invention and it is especially lovely when used by long distance friends. You will always cherish the ugly snapchats you receive on a daily basis from these friends. And you can also work on keeping up that killer snapchat streak you’ve got going.
Finally getting to see them after so long
This is one of the best moments of your week, month, year: the moment you’re finally reunited with your best friends. After all the late night phone calls and frantic texting, you’re face to face with your favorite person in the whole world, and all you want to do is cling tight and never let go.
Being able to see how they’ve grown
Being away for extended periods of time means that there’s a lot that goes on you don’t know about. You change. Your friends change. But I think one of the coolest things about long distance friendships is that you very clearly get to see those changes. I’ve seen my friends blossom in confidence, beauty, grace, and in so many other amazing ways. They’re still your crazy best friend. But now you get to see how much they’ve grown into themselves after some time apart.
Your friendship is stronger than ever
Despite not having seen each other in however long and being separated by however many miles… you’re still best friends. And now you know that your friendship can stand the test of time and distance, thereby making it stronger than you could've imagined. While long distance friendships can definitely suck, they just reaffirm that your bestie will stay your bestie no matter what.
