Birds are singing in the meadows and trees around the arboretum, rain falls softly outside windows, and the minds of students begin to stray towards thoughts of summer. As the semester winds to a close many will begin to pack their belongings, finish their tests, and say goodbye to their friends.

For those who are seniors there is something bittersweet about this goodbye, as the fear of never seeing dear friends again lingers in the back of student’s minds. So, how does one maintain connections in today’s modern world? How does a student go about keeping in touch?

With the advent of phenomenal technologies such as Facebook, Twitter and Skype, staying connected is easier than ever. However these technologies are a poor substitute for real face-to-face interaction. Laughter can be mimicked, but true memories can’t be made through a Facebook page.

To maintain lasting relationships with someone, you must make an effort.The importance of the relationship is equal to the effort that is put into it, because the greatest gift anyone can give is their time. When someone makes the effort of giving away their time it shows how important maintaining that relationship is to them.

Finding a healthy way to keep in contact with people and interact with them is a part of becoming an adult, because it requires personal responsibility.

It is an investment of time and energy to be friends with someone, and it is a measure of personal responsibility when a person holds themselves accountable for maintaining a personal relationship.

In a relationship where both people truly care for each other, then there should not be any fear of losing contact with them.

There are endless benefits to maintaining contact with friends and family. For some it is simply the comfort of a loving embrace, a person they can speak to about their worries and troubles, and rely on when times get tough. For others it is building an interpersonal network, a web of people who can help them rise and become the best version of themselves and accomplish their dreams.

Still others do it for the memories. One day, as is the way of the world, everyone will die. It is not truly a morbid thought, simply a statement of the inevitable. When the time comes and death comes knocking at the door, it is the people who kept their friends for the memories and lived on their own terms that will feel satisfied. Life is not a measure of how many years were lived, but how those years were lived.

Friends, family, and lovers challenge you. They make you laugh, they make you cry, and sometimes they simply make you. The memories from time with friends are sometimes the only lifeboat you have when thrown into the stormy sea of doubt, fear, and anger. It is for reasons such as these and thousands more that it is worthwhile to maintain connections with people.

All it takes is a little effort.