The Friend Who Lives in My Phone

There are some people in my life currently for over some years now that when they are having bad days, I know, yet we have never sat beside each other at a table before. I know quite a few people who just disappear when life is not going as expected. I know those who send funny memes and jokes when I am quiet. And I also know some who bring up old conversations from months ago. And that I will call the mystery and strange beauty of online friendship.

I am the type of person who spends quite some time online, and I'll say I have found some genuine and real friendship there even on this Hive platform. And what I've discovered is the through screen, it's easier to open up sometimes. I always have a thorough thought before replying, and avoid the awkwardness that comes with sitting in silence, and I have also met people who we share similar interests with that the people around me do not understand. And for someone who is more or less like an introvert, the comfort that comes with that always feels like finding a room where nobody is asking me to perform..

And at the same time, I have also wondered what would happen if the screen takes over and becomes the whole room.

When it comes to seeing someone physically or noticing something, an online friend might not be able to do that. Yes, they might see the tiredness in our faces, notice the shift in our voices, and might even figure out that when we say we are fine, we aren't actually fine. Because countless of times, I have hidden behind my usual messages when I have something seriously bothering me.

In most cases, what I've realized is that using the internet, there's this comfort that it gives without telling us to practice the harder parts of friendship, like sitting together, hanging out, being there for one another, showing up, forgiving small disagreements and misunderstandings, and all being there even when we have nothing to ask or say to eachother.

And personally, I do not think online friendship is taking over real friendships in a complete way. And that is not even something I want because I still cherish all my physical friendships and the timely hangouts and all. Because most of the people I have met online for years may never become physical friends, let alone see each other, and that is absolutely fine. I still appreciate their presence. But what I have also gotten to know is that there is always this special feeling when my physical friends come to knock on my door, eat together, talk about real life matters, take a walk together, or just simply sit beside each other and have physical contact.

Because what I have realized is that we always need all the friendship beyond just typing and typing, where sometimes we ghost or just go silent on each other, and that alone can say enough. And maybe the most healthy friendship is not getting to choose between having an online friend or the physical ones. But getting to know that we can meet a lot of friends through various apps on our device, but than online friendship should not become the only place where we get to leave our life. There is always more to it in real life.

Thank you for reading.

_{Images created by Gemini AI}