C And Me

I met C in university and we became good friends. When she broke up with her boyfriend I stayed friends with both of them.

We were always fairly close but remained "just good friends". We could talk about almost anything and supported each other when we were feeling low.

C finished university before me and moved off to different towns. We kept in contact with letters and phone calls. We continued to give each long distance support covering job issues, relationships and so on. C was one of the few friends that hadn't drifted away due to moving. I appreciated her for that.

When I moved back to Victoria I ended up in a nice furnished apartment in Esquimalt. I was so proud of that place and loved to show it off. C visited Victoria for the first time in years and stayed with me. It was a lot of fun to have her stay.

A year or two later I went to Edmonton for a wedding and spent an afternoon visiting C at her apartment. I enjoyed that visit and had to make time for it because everything was centered around relatives. It was good that I did that because that was the last I saw of C for years.

I am not sure why C and I drifted apart. I remember a period where we were both feeling overwhelmed with life and couldn't offer each other support. Furthermore when we did try it didn't work because we hadn't kept up on what was happening with each other.

I remember leaving a message on her answering machine and not getting a response. I was feeling down and got upset. I knew I was overreacting but it was as if I was preparing myself for the loss of a friend.

I remember talking with a friend on the phone a few months later and the subject of C came up. Neither of us had heard from her for around 6 months. C had left my life.

That was 10 years ago.

I have seen C since then when meeting with mutual friends. She is now an acquaintance more than a friend. I remember the old fun times but I don't dwell on them. We have never talked about how or why we grew apart. It is just one of those things that happen.

I got thinking of C recently because of stresses in one of my current friendships. I wondered if I could learn something useful from the experience. I am not sure if I have.