You’ve been best friends for years. In fact, you shared your elementary school years together, exchanged notes to each other only to be discovered by the teacher and read out loud in class. Then you both moved on to the high school years and shared first-time heartaches and heartbreaks, only to graduate and find yourself in Universities across the country. But you managed to stay in touch with long chats updating each other on exploits, conquests, missed assignments and discovering the world for the first time. Then a funny thing happened. You both graduated and started working. Met other friends through work, play and built a new social life. You fell in love for the first time – really fell in love – and your world started to change a bit… as did hers. Before you know it, you and your best friend – the one you shared so much of a common history with – begin to drift and live very separate lives. Bottom-line, over time you notice you have started to grow apart. And interests have changed and you realize one fine day, you aren’t sure what you have in common anymore.
Friendships, like any other relationships go through peaks and valleys and as long as you accept and understand that, you and those you feel you may have drifted from can bring your friendship back and build a bond even stronger than before. The following are suggestions for rekindling an old friendship:
1. Be honest
Acknowledge the obvious – that you both have drifted apart and chat about what you think the reason might be. Most of the time, it’s as simple as “life happening.”
2. Find common ground
If you both used to have things in common, there is a really good chance you still do. So rediscover those things about the other. Maybe you don’t have as much as you used to, but guaranteed you have your shared history together and that is more valuable than any hobby or interest.
3. Time and effort
Rekindling an old friendship takes both time and effort on both parts so if it’s important to you both, put aside the time and really put in your best effort. It will be noticed, appreciated and reciprocated
4. Social Circle
You both likely have made new friends over time. Bring the other into your new social circle and let them discover you as you are today, via those that know you. They will appreciate being included in your world.
