The senior friends we’ve had for what feels like forever are on the verge of graduating from high school. As we underclassmen make plans to return next year, our friends are graduating and starting their adult lives, and many of us feel like we are left behind.
It’s a hard thing many non-seniors face: we have the feeling of “they won’t reach out,” but the reality is your senior friends are likely just as sad and afraid of drifting away from you.
There’s the obvious advice people will give, “Just don’t become friends with seniors,” but that’s impossible; seniors are not confined to their own age group. So how do we answer the real question: how do we deal with our Senior friends leaving us?
1: Acknowledge it. The friend we either sit at lunch, play sports, are childhood best friends, are camp friends with, etc., is leaving, and now we want to cry because they’ve been with you for many milestones in your life, and they are going away. To acknowledge this person going away, we need to face it with an honest face and allow yourself to feel what you’re feeling—don’t dismiss or minimize it.
2: Prepare yourself for the “big day.” The “big day” many readers might think we are referring to is graduation day, but what we really mean is moving day. Your favorite senior is leaving for a school three hours away, maybe even longer. After they move, they’ll be gone and probably won’t come home until Thanksgiving Break. Preparing for the “big day” can be difficult, but you can try new things to help fill the void. Join more clubs, hang out with those friends that are in your grade. There’s no better way to move on from the past than involving yourself with people who are in the same grade.
3: Don’t be bitter about it. Being envious of all these people getting into great colleges while you are left in your hometown is a natural, normal thing, but don’t let it get to your head. It’s not their fault they were born in 2007 and you were born in 2008 so, don’t be bitter about it. They’ve stressed and worked their way to get accepted to college, and soon it’ll be your time too.
4: Keep in contact. Set up dates to hang out when they come home for breaks, Facetime every couple weeks and debrief about their college life and your high school life. They want to see you as much as you want to see them.
5: Be proud of them always. A true friend will always be proud of their friend for reaching their goals. Everyone wishes their senior friends could stay in their hometown to be close, but most seniors have big dreams, and we should always support them wherever they want to go. They will be proud of you when you reach your goals too. Being able to miss someone this much is always a privilege.
