Along the way, we meet some truly special people that we form solid friendships with. This may happen in primary school, as teenagers, or when you are in university. It is easy to foster these relationships as you meet your friends on a daily basis. As you get older, however, you may find yourselves drifting apart – physically. Due to career choices or other demands in life, your friends and you may not be living in the same city anymore.
This does not mean that you have to abandon these friendships, nonetheless. You simply need to make a little bit more of an effort. Here are some of the many ways that you can stay in touch with your long distance friends:
Never Miss a Birthday
A true friend will never miss your birthday – that is a well-known fact. Birthdays are acknowledged with a text message, phone call, or a card. Now you have the opportunity to make this day even more special – send them a present. Due to the physical separation, many people forego giving presents. You do not have to, however. Instead, send your friends’e gift cards online. It is a great way to let your friends now that you are thinking of them. It also lets you play a small part in their special day. After all, one of the best parts of your birthday is getting presents! Perhaps you can even schedule a meet-up with them so that you can go shopping together.
Scheduled Phone Calls
Due to hectic schedules, and sometimes different time zones, it is easy to keep missing your friends’ calls. To avoid this phenomenon, set aside a time when at least two people are free. You may not be able to do this too often but try to keep in touch at least once a month via a phone call. Allocate a minimum of thirty minutes so that you and your bestie can have a heart-to-heart. You will find that in certain instances, this is all that you need to keep your friendship alive. Of course, you should try to be available for when one of your friends really needs your assistance during a trying time.
Meet Up Annually
Do you and your group of friends live incredibly far from one another? You may think that this puts an end to your meeting up, but this does not have to be the case. Instead, consider a midway point that all of the friends can meet. This cuts down the travelling time for everyone involved. Have a little break from your regular lives for a blast from your past. Understandably, this can be difficult to manage too often. In this case, you should aim to see each other at least once a year. Phone calls and other interactions are great but nothing keeps a friendship strong quite like catching up face-to-face.
Write a Letter
It is a lost art but one that should definitely be revived. This is because it is an extremely heartfelt gesture to write a physical letter to someone. There is something incredibly personal about writing letters to one another. Just think about it; would you rather have an inbox full of emails or a drawer full of letters? Undoubtedly, the latter option is certainly more sentimental.
If you truly value the friendships that you have, you need to work hard to preserve them. Take a little time out of your busy life to ensure that you and your friends keep in touch. It will be well worth the effort.