‘I wonder why the older you are, the lonelier you get,’ my boyfriend said to me the other day. Yes, sadly, sometimes this is true.
My good friend (who’s currently doing the same Master’s degree) and I have said this over and over again: we are friendless. Most of our friends have gone back home for good and we – the ones that are left – find it difficult to forge new friendship.
Yes, everyone is anywhere but here. My best friend’s in Sydney. Half of the ‘Arts gang’ are in Singapore and UK. Others go back home to Jakarta – most are forced by their parents, and some choose Indonesia over Australia.
I know, having a partner helps a lot. At least, there’s always something to do on the weekends.
But other than that, the times when I go out with friends in a week can be counted – once. Or sometimes twice. But as a university student, shouldn’t I go out with friends every day?
If that’s the case for me, what about my boyfriend? He’s working full time and most of his friends are married or living in another country. He told me once about the good old days – when he was in his twenties and ‘the boys’ just ask each other what’s for supper every other night. He missed those days.
If I’m honest, I miss my old friends too.
I miss the brunch, the coffees, the BBQ and the road trips.
The solution is to make new friends, but for me it’s not that easy. Making new friends is hard because you need to put a lot of effort (from making small talk to scheduling a meeting to learning each other’s likes and dislikes to being nice and to finally ‘click’ with each other). And I may sound old for saying this, but sometimes I’m just too lazy to do the process all over again.
Which is why I still hate networking.
So perhaps I should jot this down for my 2015 resolution: make new friends. Put a little bit more effort. Be more open to invitations and most importantly, say yes.
Photo is taken by Alicia Chan during our graduation trip around Victoria. Here’s us at Sky high, Dandenong.
