Entering into my freshman year of college, I was anxious to see what kinds of people I would meet. I did not know many people at my school and was nervous about making friends in a new environment. Luckily, these feelings quickly passed as I met some incredible people throughout my first two years of college. My group of friends quickly bonded and we were inseperable; Until I learned that the majority of them were planning study abroad trips or wanted to transfer schools. Within months, my life turned into a chorus of “I miss you” and “I can’t wait to see you again”. While I enjoy hearing about their experiences at their current schools, having multiple friends move hundreds of miles away has taught me a lot about distance.
1. Friendsickness is real
Remember the first few weeks of your freshman year of college? You finally moved out of your house and were excited to start your brand new life of independence. You met great new people, started your first college classes, and joined interesting student organizations. Everything went great for the first few days- then you feel a pit in your stomach. You found yourself constantly missing your family back home. You used any excuse to call your parents because you miss talking to them on a daily basis and are craving a home-cooked meal more than ever. You love your college experience, but still find yourself counting down the days till break when you can see your family again. Imagine this, but instead you miss blasting music with your friends on your way to the grocery store and group study sessions in the library. You quickly find out that friendsickness can be just as bad as homesickness.
2. Your phone becomes your best friend
If you were not completely addicted to your phone before, you will be now. It’s glued to your side because you do not want to miss out on a single text, Snapchat story, or Instagram comment. Nothing brightens up your day more than a text from your BFF, telling you they hope your day is amazing day and that they can’t wait to see you again.
3. You get creative in how you communicate
Time differences and busy schedules make FaceTime dates and phone calls a challenge. You figure that telling them the story of how you dropped an entire tray of food on the floor in the dining hall over text would make the story lose personality, so you get creative. One way to tell stories on a busy schedule is sending a series of videos on Snapchats to your friends. This is something that my friends and I have started doing recently; so the other person can open and respond when they have time. There are days when I check my phone to see I have 15 Snapchats from my friends, but I can’t wait to get out of class to open them.
4. You know the current time in multiple countries without the use of a world clock
At first, managing the time differences can be tricky. You need to call your friend right now to tell them about the life-changing documentary you saw on Netflix. You are about to pick up your phone when realize it is 5:00 a.m. where they go to school. After some deliberation, you decide they may be slightly irritated if you wake them up to tell them a conspiracy theory about plastic bottles. To avoid these accidental wake up calls, you start to memorize the time difference between countries.
5. You realize you have a lot more free time and how to use it
You can no longer run down the hall and knock on your friend’s door if you are bored. You suddenly have a ton of free time and may not know how to cope. While it can be relaxing to binge-watch Gossip Girl on Netflix for the first few weeks, the boredom quickly sets in. You find yourself picking up more shifts at work, joining student organizations, and studying at the library for longer periods of time. You get excited when you think about how much you have accomplished in a few months due to the extra work you put in other aspects of your life.
While long-distance friendships can be challenging, it is all worth it when you have the right people in your life. I am so incredibly blessed to have friendships can withstand hundreds and thousands of miles.
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