I have a confession. I am a proximity friend. I am better at maintaining my relationships with friends that are close enough to me, physically, that I can drive to them or they to me within the hour. I think as we begin to settle into our adulthood, we really all are much better at being proximity friends to our pals (likely for the obvious psychological reasons).
This is a topic I discuss a lot with my sister. She's amazing at keeping in touch with people, no matter where on the planet they are. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area now, but still keeps consistent "check in" dates with girlfriends currently living in Seattle, the UK, even South Korea. And after seeing a related post last week from Joy at 3 Chairs, it prompted me to talk with my sis about the best ways to stay in touch with friends living far away.
This is a topic I discuss a lot with my sister. She's amazing at keeping in touch with people, no matter where on the planet they are. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area now, but still keeps consistent "check in" dates with girlfriends currently living in Seattle, the UK, even South Korea. And after seeing a related post last week from Joy at 3 Chairs, it prompted me to talk with my sis about the best ways to stay in touch with friends living far away.
Admitting that I am a better proximity friend isn't to say that I don't adore my long distance friends with all of my being -- I'm just terrible at keeping in touch with them.
I know this happens to you, too. The longer you go without reaching out, the worse you feel. This prompts the inevitable, self-imposed guilt-trip at the thought of reaching out after so long, etc etc etc... it just never ends, and we become content in our misery and guilt, thinking our friend must now, obviously, hate us.
I know this happens to you, too. The longer you go without reaching out, the worse you feel. This prompts the inevitable, self-imposed guilt-trip at the thought of reaching out after so long, etc etc etc... it just never ends, and we become content in our misery and guilt, thinking our friend must now, obviously, hate us.
But they don't. Because most likely, they're in the exact same boat. We all want to be better at long distance friendships - and then make it a habit to maintain them. So here are 5 Ways to Be More Than Just a Proximity Friend:
