You have been living on campus for a few months and you are starting to realize that it is not always easy to stay in touch with your best friends from home.
It’s the time in your relationship when you have to make an effort for the survival of the friendship. Do not stress, because while it can be difficult, it is possible to balance your new college friends with your adolescent ones.
The first step in maintaining your friendships is giving each other space.
Both of you have busy lives between studying for exams, managing a campus social life, and getting enough sleep. It is important to understand that you will not be able to keep up to date with every daily happening of your friend.
If you expect to know about his/her life as much as you did in high school, you will only become upset and confused when you find yourself out of the loop.
What you should do is set up a day of the week when you are both free to catch up and chat.
By preparing in this way, you will feel more at ease knowing that you are still a part of the other’s life. There will be less concern with ‘when will I talk to her/him?’ and greater concentration on checking how he is doing.
But, be patient.
Even with a reserved time for chatting, there will be days when one of you is forced to cancel or postpone. This is an occurrence that cannot be avoided when you are faced with papers to write and activities with organizations on campus.
Recognize that your friend is trying to make the most of his college experience, just like you.
When it really begins to feel like the two of you are falling apart, try being creative.
Send a postcard to your friend’s college.
This gesture is cute and exciting because students do not receive much mail aside from the occasional card from home or bills.
When your friend reads this card (filled with inside jokes you have shared), he/she will remember the strength and value of your friendship.
A card can be placed on a fridge, on the desk or somewhere it can be seen every day; this way, your friend won’t be able to forget about you!
Take advantage of breaks you have off from classes.
It is vital to spend time together whenever you are both home. Unfortunately, many universities do not have breaks during the same time, so try visiting one another whenever there is a lull in the workload.
By seeing where your friend has been living these past few months, you will be able to appreciate their experience to a different degree.
If you make the effort and are honest, your friendships should be able to survive the distance. Do not forget to leave a spot for them in your thoughts and in your heart!
