Some friendships aren’t meant to last a lifetime

I've been thinking about friendship lately—not the kind we post on social media, but the real ones—the ones that happen in small moments, in coffee shops, and late-night conversations.

You know how it goes.

We meet someone, maybe at work or through friends. We click. We share jokes. We grab lunch together. Soon enough, we're sharing our dreams, our fears, and our silly stories that only make sense to us.

It's also interesting that time flows differently when we build these connections. One coffee turns into weekly meetups, quick chats into long conversations, and work friends into real friends.

But time is strange that way.

Slowly, the weekly meetups become monthly. The long conversations turn into quick texts. "Let's catch up soon" becomes our most common promise. We tell ourselves we're just busy. Work is hectic. Life gets in the way.

We keep postponing that coffee.
We leave messages unread.
We say "next time" too often.
Until there is no next time.

One day, we scroll through our social media and see them happy with their new friends. They have new inside jokes, new coffee shops, and new memories being made.

That's when it hits us.

We realised what we had.
We understand what we lost.
We see how we took it all for granted.

The truth about friendship is painfully simple: it needs attention. Not grand gestures or expensive gifts. Just time. Presence. Care.

But we often learn this lesson too late.

Always too late.

Maybe that's why some friendships end - not with arguments or drama, but with quiet fadeaways. With coffees, we never had. With messages we never sent. With the time we never made for them.

And perhaps that's the hardest part of growing up - watching some friendships become memories, knowing we could have done more to keep them alive.

So here's to the friends who stayed.
And to the ones who left.
To the coffees we shared.
And to the ones we should have had.

Because, in the end, it's not about controlling who stays or leaves.
It's about being present while they're here.

I hope you find this insightful. Remember:

It's not going to be easy,
But it's not impossible.

Your friend,
Brian.