Friends of Proximity- people who hang out with you/you hang out with out of convenience
When you move to a new city, you experience many emotions- excitement, fear, anxiety, relief… But most commonly, loneliness. For those in relationships, having the man of your dreams doesn’t make you any less lonely. It certainly helps, but as women, girlfriends are essential to our well-being. The most amazing man on earth still won’t be able to fill the void that our friends fill.
As we move away, our friends at home move forward, just as we do. They are living their lives, just as we are beginning new chapters. But in the loneliness of being somewhere new, we begin to feel slighted by our friends and start to feel like an outsider.
Making new friends is a process, but so is keeping the old. With distance, more effort must be made on both ends of the friendship. This is when we learn who our true friends are and this is when it may become apparent that some friendships we’ve spent much time preserving aren’t worth preservation.
For me, unfortunately, it seems that most of my friendships fell under this category. I’m finding that I have maybe two friendships worth keeping, worth making the effort. The others seem to continuously let me down and add to my loneliness. Sometimes it’s better to be alone than to surround yourself with people who don’t give a damn.
I’m making new friends, and I’m sure some of these friends will fall under that category eventually, but hopefully, with maturity and with experience, I am making more fulfilling friendships with people who have my best interests at heart.
Sometimes, friendships of proximity are extremely helpful in coping with loneliness. It is just a matter of not confusing the two types. True friendship is quality over quantity and defies all distance, but in life, especially in transition, we learn that these people are few and far between.
