I met my best friend in second grade. It took a few weeks, but once we clicked, we were inseparable. She lived just three minutes from my house, and we spent nearly every moment together. Either at school, at one of our houses, or on FaceTime when our parents wouldn’t allow a playdate. At seven years old, we filled every waking minute talking about anything our little brains could think of.
Then suddenly, everything changed.
In fourth grade, on an ordinary afternoon, I found out her dad had accepted a job in Ohio and they were moving. I didn’t panic at first. We could still FaceTime, and surely we’d see each other during school breaks, but after a year in Ohio, she moved again, this time across the world. That’s when reality hit. The person I relied on the most was now living in a completely different time zone. Talking would be harder, visiting nearly impossible.
Ten years have passed, and we still haven’t seen each other in person. But strangely enough, our friendship is stronger than ever. Here’s what I’ve learned about making long-distance friendships work.
The first challenge was figuring out communication. I was in Massachusetts, and she was now in Asia. The 11-hour time difference made our old habits impossible. We were only 11 years old and didn’t have social media yet, and FaceTime—the only method we really knew—was useless when one of us was always asleep.
Naturally, we drifted. For about a year, we only exchanged the occasional message. Our flow disappeared. I didn’t know what her daily life looked like anymore, and she didn’t know mine.
Then one day, she asked to FaceTime. Even though we hadn’t spoken in months, we fell right back into our old rhythm. That moment taught us how important communication really was.
Over time, we figured out how to stay close despite the distance and time difference. Long-distance friendship doesn’t require constant, hours-long conversations because none of us have the time or energy for that every day. Staying connected can be simple.
A quick text asking, “How was your day?” lets the other person respond on their own time and still feel seen. Sending a funny post you know they’d love is another small way of saying, “Hey, this made me think of you.”
We also had to learn that late replies aren’t personal. Life gets busy. With a big time difference, you can’t expect immediate responses. I often send her random thoughts throughout the day, and even if she replies the next morning or the next day, she always gets back to me. That consistency is what matters.
While the small, everyday check-ins keep our friendship alive, the occasional long catch-up is just as important. Every relationship takes effort, and if you don’t show up consistently, the bond starts to fade. That’s why we made intentional time to hang out, despite the distance.
For us, Fridays became the day that worked best. Over the years, it slowly turned into our unofficial “FaceTime day.” Of course, life gets busy and things come up, so it doesn’t always happen exactly on schedule. But we make it a point to find at least one day each week to talk in a deeper, more meaningful way. Setting aside that time has kept our connection strong, even from opposite sides of the world.
I sometimes wonder what life would be like if nothing had changed, but at the same time, I’m grateful that it did. Back then, I took her presence for granted. I assumed I’d always have my best friend right beside me. When she suddenly wasn’t, we both had room to grow in ways we never expected.
The distance didn’t weaken our bond—it made me appreciate it more. I learned how lucky I was to have someone I could trust completely, someone who would be there for me no matter how far away she lived. She has become my model of what a good friend is. A way to keep myself and others accountable in other relationships. This entire experience taught me one of the most valuable lessons of all: to be genuinely grateful for the people in my life.
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