ON LINE FRIENDSHIPS.

In our journey of life, we meet a lot of people. Some of them are with us only for a short time, while some of them become special to us. We get to know them better and a good rapport is formed. They become part and parcel of our life. There used to be times, when people became pen pals, they stayed connected only through letters initially. Letters used to be the only way of communication, and may be a phone call.. But they became good friends and also made plans to meet each other to give more meaning to their friendship.  Now with the internet and social networks, we get to meet a lot of people, though in a virtual world. Another form of pen pals, one could say.

        I too made a lot of friends through face book and other games. Some of them were just acquaintances. Some of them became good friends. With the formation of groups, it became more fun with exchange of tit bits, recipes, music, art etc. A group of friends,  belonging to different places, with different tastes and characteristics. It became a second home  for people leading a lonely life away from home. We never saw them personally, but still exchanged words on the walls and finally became a part of an extended family.

        Some of them became close friends and some of them special to us in some way. Arranging to meet these friends, whom we have never met, became an exciting experience. A memory , to be cherished forever. Sometimes we never get a chance to meet them, still they remain close friends. We get to understand them and sometimes small fights, where the child in us pops its head out and makes us sulk till we are pampered to come out of the wall each one builds. For some the friendship remains virtual one only, nothing more than that. Once they get to know each other, efforts are made to keep in touch by speaking to each other.

    When we talk to each other on the walls, the tone of a person’s written words give us a clue of their moods and feelings. As the saying goes “A pen is mightier than a sword,” means a lot here. When we write on the walls, sometimes we get so carried away, that we lose track of what we are writing. It becomes very difficult to erase it out…These words sometimes stare at us from our walls. We have to tackle every friendship we make with tact. Respect every friendship and try to keep it live.

     Daily we are keen to meet those friends; we have met on the walls of our computer.  One day, we don’t see them, there is concern in our minds, as to what happened. Plans are made to meet each other, sometimes it is surprise calls from them. In today’s stress filled world, this turn out to be a blessing, as there is lot of fun, teasing and puzzles to be solved in some groups.  We grow so close to some of them, in spite of the distance, we feel we have known each other for a long time. There is some kind of rapport and understanding, that we get to know if there is a slight change in the way they wish you  a “Good Morning” or a “Hi”.

     Some say all these friendships are namesake ones…..But I have always valued friendship and my friends. I did get a few friends who have been with me even in my worst time, giving me support and encouraging me always.  They have been very close to my heart….Sometimes an unseen bond binds us so close to each other, that we feel incomplete or unsatisfied with life when you don’t see them one day. It is not necessary to see each other in real life, to have that bonding.  But I should say that I have lost a few of them, just like that for no reason. I do try to keep in touch and if I have made a friendship I have made it with sincerity.

  In short, we make a lot of friends. It is easy to make friends, but we have to take time and effort to keep up these friendships. A small “Hi”, a wish, or a smile to show that they are always remembered, is enough to bring a smile on the face of a friend. Try to always maintain a cordial relationship with each friend you have made. We never know what a friend has gone through in life, we have to be very careful when we make assumptions. These friendships teach us to adjust and accommodate. We don’t see the faces, but somehow from the words we see, we understand them. They also teach us that we need not see face to face, to keep up a friendship. I do believe in angels, and I feel some of our friends become angels to see us through, in life.

 In a friendship there is something of all relations and it becomes something above all of them. We often find that when things become difficult and each step is heavy to take, a friend comes along and eases our way by being with us. Each moment spent with a friend is like a beautiful flower that is placed in life’s bouquet.