I’ve learned friendships become unique in college. In high school, I was used to spending time every day with my close friends.

Now, I’m lucky if I get to see people from back home three or four times a year.

I’m ecstatic if I get to see some college friends once every two weeks.

Many of my days are filled with classes, practice, lifting, homework, homework and more homework.

When the rare occurrence happens and my schedule works out so another person and I can have lunch or supper together to catch up, I do my best to make the most of the time I spend with them.

I’ve had to realize it doesn’t matter whether you spend two hours or five minutes with someone; it matters whether or not it was quality time.

It’s easy to get caught up in the same old “how are you doing,” or “how are classes,” but I’ve been working on trying to delve deeper into conversations when I get the chance to spend time with close friends.

I honestly enjoy when people genuinely want to know how my life is going — I want to do my best to reciprocate that.

As much as I’d like to say social media completely helps people stay in touch, it truly doesn’t. Nothing can beat face-to-face time. That’s just the truth.

It was hard for me to adjust and accept the fact a busy college life meant less time with valuable people; however, it has made those friendships and relationships so much more valuable to me.

Rachel Astleford is a nutrition & dietetics major at SDSU and can be reached at [email protected].