The simple decision of who you sit beside in lecture seems like a mindless decision, yet that decision can create a possibility for a friendship that lasts a term or even a lifetime.
What starts as small talk and awkwardness between you and the person beside you turns into camaraderie in the days, weeks and months that follow. From getting each other’s name to getting their Instagram account; from a smile, to a nod, to a handshake. Perhaps even picking a seat and putting your bag on the one beside you to save it for that friend. In the sea of strangers, you had just made that friend.
The ease of having that friend at a certain time and setting — no matter how lighthearted, is of itself a spark of joy.
In the fleeting days, weeks and months you spend together, you will have known little things about each other — the bond over your similarities and new perspectives on your differences. The frequent small talk and occasional deep conversations here and there; somehow knowing bits of each other’s stories sets your relationship apart from your other friendships.
Once the term comes to an end, you may realize that it was a friendship on conditional grounds; the shared experiences end, and you see each other less — maybe not at all in the months or years that follow.
That was fun while it lasted.
Time passes as you go your separate ways, and one day you'll find yourself smiling as you randomly remember a joke or a story they told, a compliment they gave or a moment you share. In the fate of your paths crossing again, you’ll pick up right where you left off as in some ways that friendship and connection never ceased.
In the fleeting period of time you spent together as friends, you’ll realize that they’ve become a part of you and your story in little ways.
As you search for that friendly face and a similar connection in seas of strangers is when you'll grasp the magnitude of those fleeting and simple friendships in yourself and your story that otherwise often passes you by.