Separation

[JohnRN]

I woke up this morning and have been feeling a bit down.

No, it's not the usual homesickness. Truthfully, I never really missed home. But I miss my friends heck lot more. My friends are very, very, very close to me.

And when I came back to the US this time, I realised something. That that was probably the last time I saw them all. Most of them are now graduates and are all busy trying to settle down. A lot of them are moving away.

I have no idea when I'll meet them again, if ever.

Talking on the phone and webcam and stuff is just not the same. I used to change houses every 2 years or so. I hated it, because it meant that just as I was forming bonds with others, it was torn and I was uprooted and dumped elsewhere.

Inspite of all that moving over all those years, separation is still not easy.

[se0sea]

you may not be able to hang with them again,but you all can still keep in touch. theres always phone,letters,and a great thing called email. it keeps lines of communication open and you all can keep up with eachother over the years.they will always be your friends.you will always be theirs.who knows,you all can have a reunion someday too. cheer up dude,I know you miss them,you will make more friends in the states too.you have your online friends here and we're like the trackpads family here.
so,chin up,rear back your shoulders,and enjoy life.

[JohnRN]

Ach! You're probably right Se0!

Anyways, my great dream is to accumulate an enormous quantity of money so that I can purchase a HUGE piece of land somewhere and then all my loved ones and my friends can all live together That's my retirement dream!

[conlor]

Don't worry, John. We'll all be there. (Won't have to save up so much for our retirement.....)

[se0sea]

Originally Posted by John.

Ach! You're probably right Se0!

Anyways, my great dream is to accumulate an enormous quantity of money so that I can purchase a HUGE piece of land somewhere and then all my loved ones and my friends can all live together That's my retirement dream!

oh you mean like neverland?

[Snowden]

Originally Posted by John.

Ach! You're probably right Se0!

Anyways, my great dream is to accumulate an enormous quantity of money so that I can purchase a HUGE piece of land somewhere and then all my loved ones and my friends can all live together That's my retirement dream!

John, I hope you achieve that dream. It's great when we hear from an old friend we thought we'd never see or hear from again. I lost touch with a lovely young woman (I had considered taking her home for a son to marry). We met several times when we were both on retreat in the one Episcopal convent I know of; but we lost touch. I knew her name, and that was all. Several years later I called the convent, but the name wasn't familiar to the nun on the phone.

And time went by and my husband one day said he had a letter for me from a person I thought I had never heard of. I started to say "toss it" but something stopped me and there she was - her married name was the only thing new - and three kids, now four.

That was about 15 or so years ago. Since then she had the fourth child and her husband died of cancer. We are in touch almost daily - but I haven't seen her since the last retreat we were on. But the point of all this is that we share a history now; not just a few chance meetings. A quiet friendship has become a strong bond.

Sometimes keeping in touch really doesn't need the preferred face-to-face contact we want. Friendship is forever, whether or not we see the people.

[Betty Boop]

John., My closest friends are still the ones I made the first two years of college 30 years ago.

We have a tradition called the Girls' Club. We get together 3-4 times a year and e-mail and phone call and before e-mail became (there really was a time when it didn't exist) snail-mailed all these years. We have been through marriages, kids, children, divorces, remarriages, kids' marriages, and for some grandkids along with sadly even a few deaths together. BUT we have always kept in touch and shared our deepest secrets over a few beers and a few games of pool or a movie with popcorn or Chinese take-out food and Monopoly or whatever ...

So, it will be for you - If YOU make the conscience choice to keep the bonds close no matter where in the world your adventures and travels and theirs take you! Your relationships grow in time - not diminish. I am glad I am not who I was at 16 (starting college) or at 25 (getting married) or at 28 (starting a family) or 40 when the last one started school. But I am prayerfully thankful for those friendships forged way back when that have brought me close to golden! They are what keep a person moving when you could get mired down in the mucked up parts of life otherwise. Now, we are (my girlfriends from way back then) are getting ready to start our golden years after three decades TOGETHER! We have aged (well, Carole and Julie haven't) - but the friendships are timeless.

Just remember YOU make the choice to keep in contact and then follow-through on that choice. No "good-byes" just "farewell until we meet again."