Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and old lang syne ?
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
Friends come and go. I have a couple of friends who I have known since my high school years, so very long ago. We rarely see each other anymore, yet we are still friends. We will always be friends. If either of these men called me today asking for help, I would do whatever I could without question.
These are real life (RL) friends. How are they different from virtual friends, people I have never met face-to-face? What makes a friendship... virtual or otherwise? Friends are people who shared common interests, who have shared experiences, They have shared their hopes and dreams with each other, their fears, their laughter and their tears. I really don't know what, if any, is the difference between a friend I've made online and a friend I made in real life.
Except that virtual friends disappear so suddenly that it hurts. I've lost two friends in the past month. One I have heard rumors about why she dropped out of sight. I think I understand what happened and why. The other friend had been getting more distant from not just me, but lots of people for quite awhile. She came online more and more infrequently. Then one day she was gone. I miss spending time with both of them. Both of them are incredible sweet and caring ladies who I have shared many good times and laughs with. They both are friends who I will miss and hope I will see again one day.
So let’s go back to the question of RL versus virtual friends. Well RL friends are real. Right? I mean if you are my friend in RL I can see you, hear you, feel you, smell you. I know more about you than just what I have learned in conversations. A virtual friend is just as insubstantial as the pixel drawn world they inhabit. What's behind the avatar? What is the person really like? Are they sincere? Are they honest? Can they be trusted?
The irony of life in the virtual world is that, for some of us, it is an escape from a real world where we have few friends and real lives that we are anxious to escape for a few hours. Sadly we put more effort in creating a new persona in the virtual world rather than rebuilding our real lives. I spent way too much time doing that before I realized that I could never be the person I created and recreated myself again. The avatar may be tall and lean, two things I am not, but the personality is ME. I have spent nearly two years in Second Life now and I think I have come to terms with it and my real life.
The thing I haven't come to terms with is losing a friend. To me real or virtual, a friend is a friend, and each one is precious to me.
We two have paddled in the stream,
from morning sun till dine ;
But seas between us broad have roared
since auld lang syne.
And there’s a hand my trusty friend !
And give us a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll take a right good-will draught,
for auld lang syne.
For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.
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