all good things must come to an end...or, at least, change

Lots of CMU alumni back in town and catching up with old friends. There are a handful of people I have been especially look forward to seeing, and yet even with the little time we have, I have been so wistful about the fact that I won't be able to see them next year that our time together felt tense, like not having enough water to quench a thirst. This of course made things feel a little awkward, even strained. And I saw how I was trying to hold on to shifting sand.

Let me not attempt to embalm friendships that are changing in nature. To embalm them would inevitably call for the deaths of these friendships first. I would far rather accept that things are no longer the same, but continue to have a new way of relating with these still-dear friends. I would far rather they stay in my life, however differently, than feed on idealized memories alone.

I just hope they will, in fact, continue to be in my life, regardless of the growing distance between us.