To be clear: I have not studied abroad yet in college. I am very much still in the United States, in the middle of our campus, enjoying being in the same vicinity as the campus Starbucks. However, although I am still in the middle of Indiana, I currently have friends scattered around the globe for a semester. This, of course, means that, since I will be abroad next semester, I will be going over a year without some of my closest friends.
Needless to say, my friends and I definitely avoided the discussion of our impending separation. We went about our lives as normal, being careful to avoid the looming conversation topic of “I will not see you for over a year.” It became the unspoken rule that if missing each other was brought up, we would just change the subject.
So I did not realize just how different that my world would be until I got back on campus. I had avoided the thought of missing my friends for so long and had simply assumed that in this age of technology, everything would be the same. Don’t get me wrong; WhatsApp, SnapChat, and GroupMe are my new favorite things, but it is still not the same as having people in person to get dinner with, hanging out in dorm rooms until 3 am, or getting ice cream and Starbucks at all hours of the night.
The first week of my new long distance relationships has been an adjustment. It is one thing to be separated for a three month summer, it is quite another to come back to a campus that you have always shared and find that half of the people that you relied on are no longer right there.
The brief phone calls, the major snap streaks, and the many text messages that keep us up to date on a day to day basis have been life savers. We have begun to get into a routine of the times that work to text each other and catch up on our days, our classes, and all of the new things that each of us are experiencing. Having long distance relationships with your best friends is difficult, and it definitely does take a commitment on both ends to maintain the friendship. However, with a little bit of time and effort, the friendships can be maintained and even improved. Our time apart has already made me appreciate my friendships so much more. I have started to cherish the time that I have, not only with my friends who are abroad, but my friends who are still here so much more. So even though I really miss everyone who is abroad, I also know that the experience is going to be great not only for them, but for our relationships too.
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