Friendship Struggles

Marandah Mangra-Dutcher, Staff Writer

My friends mean a lot to me and I value our time together. However, during the summer it is really hard to stay connected and spend time together.

Thanks to modern technology, it is not complicated to just send someone a text and start a conversation. Now, sometimes people do not respond, or cannot maintain the conversation. In my case, I partake in both these poor conversion skills.

I like talking face to face. I like making plans when sitting across from who I am making the plans with. During the school year, it is super easy to spend time with my friends. I see them everyday and talk to them constantly. In the summer, when I have to message them in order to hangout, I struggle.

Another issue is how busy my friends and I can be during the summer. Many go on family vacations, acquired summer jobs, and make sure to keep themselves busy. With so many busy schedules it is hard to schedule times to see each other. On top of that, asking if we could plan to hangout and being shot down due to other plans, hurts self-esteem. I no longer ask as often as I used too.

Due to my friends and I not seeing each other, I feel extremely disconnected from them. Whenever the new school year has started in the past, when I walk through the doors on the first day it feels like I am talking to complete strangers. Feeling  that with the people you thought you were close to, stinks.

I want to do better a staying connected to my friends, and I intend to put more effort into maintaining these connections. However, the modern technology I mentioned works both ways. Your friends also have to be willing to find time to hangout and talk. They have to want to stay connected.