Intentional interactions

For the last four years, I have always had show choir on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Sometimes I would leave rehearsal with my friends happy, sweaty, and excited; other times I would leave just sweaty. I was usually pretty sweaty.

But now that show choir is done and I am on the cusp of graduating, I am finding myself with more and more time on my hands.

In fact, I had so much free time that I watched Adam Sandler’s family friendly comedy, “Jack and Jill” not ironically.

All this time on my hands got me to thinking: this is only one of the many things in my life coming to a close; the friendships I have worked so hard to maintain are now about to end.

Everything is changing. How do I possibly come to terms with everything I know being crumpled up and being “Kobe’d” into a trashcan? The answer is simple: make time for your friends in this confusing stage of life.

Most of my senior friends have bonded over our mutual cases of senioritis and talked over our summer plans. Some of my personal favorite ‘originals’ include, “Sleeping” and “Eating.” After of course LOL’ing out loud sarcastically, I promptly become skeptical. As an extrovert, I am always looking for friends to hang out with.

It’s about the time of year where the phrase, “We have to hang out this summer!” is thrown around more than a horseshoe at a summer barbecue. However, when I look back on my summers, very few of those ‘offers’ ended up panning out. In this stage of life, we don’t have time to wonder where we stand with our friends.

It is imperative that we act with intention and honesty when offered to spend time with our friends. Especially for seniors, it is becoming more and more of a reality that our time here is short. So making our friendships a priority is crucial.

In “Oh the Places You’ll Go” children’s author Dr. Seuss states, “All alone! Whether you like it or not, being alone is what you’ll be quite a lot!” This idea holds true as these next years will be full of challenges and loneliness. Therefore, learning how to be by yourself is critical for development in life after high school.

To those who choose to maintain relationships during college: well, good luck with that. Because following your dreams and aspirations should be your main priority. Deciding your life path is a scary and yes, it requires lots of guidance and help from others. However, it is not anyone else’s place to sway you one way or another.

In a culture where there is too many social rules regarding how to interact with others, particularly over the cell phone, it seems like rocket science to please others. It becomes as difficult as defusing a bomb to find the balance between asking and not asking to hang out, how long to wait before texting, and more.

There is no formula for the delicate balance between being alone and keeping friendships. In high school, I didn’t particularly like finding the right formula in math class. However, finding the right formula in my social life is an idea that I can get behind. No sweat required.