Friends from Far Away

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to meet up with a long-distance friend in person for the first time.  She's someone I met in one of my online writer's groups, and while we've always gotten along well in our internet interactions, I wasn't sure how it would go: you can never be sure how things will go "in real life." 

Or perhaps you can--because she was every bit as lovely and genuine and down-to-earth as I knew her to be online. The conversation flowed easily, and the visit was over far too quickly.  I'm so glad that we got to connect with one another in person: as much as you can enjoy "speaking" with a person via social media or messenger, there is still no substitute for being in the other person's presence, breaking bread with them at the kitchen table, hearing their laughter, sharing emotional stories that make you both tear up, and connecting on a basic human level, without the buffer of a keyboard in the way.