Disconnecting In 3...2...1

We’ve all been through several different phases in our lives and with those phases, be it tied to a particular institution or a journey or a social circle, we've had friends. Friends who came along maybe as a partner in the first P.E. class in kindergarten, or your dorm mates or perhaps even those that you met randomly during a journey or a similar course together.

One thing common about them all, your bond with them weakened as time went by, and now inevitably, the one you poured out all your secrets to passed you by and became the recipient of singular 'hi's.

We all are guilty of this feeling when you don’t feel like engaging with your school friends or someone you used to know because I get it, small talk sucks and it just is awkward for everyone, that’s why people tend to avoid people they know in random locations if they meet unexpectedly. More than once, have I run from one mannequin to the other and successfully avoided making eye contact with people I’ve known at some point in my life; have I been successful? Not all the time; but some interactions can never be avoided.

In the end, it comes down to the fact that some people we used to call friends may only have been so because being cooped up somewhere can trigger survival instincts in terms of belonging to a social circle and hence the need to make contacts becomes a priority.

But that does change when the pressure to fit in is not too much when you're in a more open environment like college. That's why we tend to make then it a point to wish for a different environment after school, where you have another chance to introduce yourself and another opportunity to build new relationships.

In the first few months of leaving school, everyone misses each other especially if you’ve been in the same school for all your years, but contact starts getting limited as you walk on different paths and years later, even wishing on birthdays can be hardly expected.

What I yearn to say is that ultimately, it's okay. You may feel guilty for a considerable time because you're caught up and it's so inevitable. It does make sense to reach out once in a while and plan something special with your school mates, but that really should not be a priority when you're processing all that is going on in your life. The changes that take place and the fantastic on-goings in college are never going to come back again.

College has been the most fun for me, and as long as everyone is happy, you need not force yourself to call people if you don't find any joy in doing so. It's all life as it passes you by, and ultimately wherever you go, you'll end up making great friends if you stay true to yourself, so you don't have to worry about dealing with losing contacts. If they mean so much to you, you people will always have time for one another and not be obligated to call each other or partake in forced small talk.

And it does remain that if you are friends with them, no matter what you two when you all meet would be the same old friends again; time and space not standing a chance.