Ladies, I know that “seasonal friends” might not be a term you recognize, but everyone can connect with what it means.
Picture this: you start an amazing summer job at a place you love. You make fast friends with some girls (or guys) from this life-changing job, and you’re convinced that these people are going to be life-long buds even though you’re heading a million different directions once this job ends.
Your post-job group text starts strong with heart-eyes emojis littered between “I miss you” and brunch plans that never actually get planned. Soon enough your new BFF’s fade away into unanswered Snapchat’s and missed calls, and you’re left with the realization that the friends you thought were going to last forever were just seasonal friends.
Okay. Maybe it isn’t always that dramatic, but it’s a real thing. Some people only enter your life for a little while, and either fade away completely or only hit you up when it’s convenient for them. You’ve probably had a friend (or a group of friends) that you’re so close with over the summer, but then they eventually forget to text back when your lives pick back up in the fall.
Maybe you made a friend that only ever intended on being a seasonal friend, and ghosts you when they’re in their off season. Maybe you’ve even been the seasonal friend without knowing it – saying you’ll make plans with the girl you met during your summer job, but then never actually getting around to it.
Seasonal friends stay in the season you thrived in, and these relationships live in a constant loop of half-made plans and promises to catch up soon.
If this isn’t a new concept for you and you definitely thought something was up when your internship BFF left you on read 8 times in a row, then I’ve got some good news for you. You aren’t overthinking it, and you definitely aren’t alone.
Seasonal friends are a real thing that nobody ever warns you about like they do for summer flings and vacation connections. Nobody talks about seasonal friends – probably because they don’t want to recognize that the people they met aren’t who they said they were – but it’s okay to acknowledge that you have a seasonal friend, and to enjoy their company while the two of you are in the same place. Just don’t make a habit of making seasonal friends or being everyone’s seasonal friend – that will get really lonely really fast.