Biffles

We have all had those friendships. The ones that start and escalate quickly and you say after only a short period of time, "we'll be friends forever" or "she'll be in my wedding." We know the sayings and we use them a little too regularly sometimes. These sayings build a picture in our minds of our women or men sitting on the front porch saying "Remember when.." and "Ah, that was the day." So when the day comes that you realize that your "Maid of Honor" is no longer standing next to you in your wedding vision, it can be a tough realization.
Why bring up something so negative? Well, I'm not getting married anytime soon, but I am going through a time in my life where I don't know who I can call my best friend or biffle (best friend for life), as we're now calling it. I also bring it up because a friend (who's still in high school) text me yesterday about friend problems. Not to mention that Stages of Relational Decay was the topic of discussion in my Speech Communication class this morning, which yet again compelled me to analyze my own friendships. I recognize that I am in a transition of friends and it's a hard transition for me. In high school, I was surrounded by a solid, supportive, and amazing group of friends. I knew, or thought that I did, that my three high school biffles would be on the alter with me at my wedding and be the women that saw me through life's milestones.
Now, as I approach the end of my freshman year in college, I am looking back and asking myself, what happened? I don't even have an excuse; two of my three high school best friends are at the same school at me. So, what happened to our relationship? What happened to the constant text messages and midnight runs to Racetrac for slushies? I don't know. There is no question that I wanted those three friends to be the three that saw me through the rest of my life. Yet, sometimes we don't have a say as to who stays in and who quietly leaves our life. I like to think that it doesn't matter; I should be fine so long as I have my family and my faith. I'm not alright though. I miss my high school biffles with all my heart and there is not a day that passes that I don't think about and pray for them. The hardest part is that, no matter how desperately I want them to be a driving force in my life again, I can't seem to grasp the few remaining strands that are holding our relationship together.
All three of them will always be my friends, but we are moving on and growing up. God gives us the people that we need; people to lift us up when we fall; people to celebrate with us in times of thanksgiving. While I believe this, I will always need my high school biffles. Yet, I also believe that we are growing apart because other people need their amazing support; the support that got me through many tough times and positively changed my life forever. So, if you know one of them and/or consider them your biffles, take a minute and thank God for the gift that he has given you. They are truly three of the strongest, good willed, honest, and beautiful people that I know and will probably ever know.
The advise that I gave my friend yesterday is that when you feel as though you are slowly saying goodbye to a friend, recognize it. If you don't want the friendship to end, you have to work 24/7 to keep the friendship strong and fresh. If you don't mind your relationship diminishing from biffles to good friends, then enjoy and cherish every moment that you spend with them.