I Got Friends in Low Places...

Got to love a little Garth Brook's tune. I have a question/topic I wanted to throw out there for all of us to ponder/mull over (I feel like I just sounded like Marin from Men in Trees "Hello, Elmo. Patrick and I were just discussing..."). I have noticed that the older I get, I am not as good about keeping friends EXCEPT for my college friends. Seems like my college friends have a free pass for life, they can do no wrong. That isn't to say I don't get mad at them but after a few hrs/days, I will eventually forgive and forget. Maybe it is because we lived together 24-7 for 5 years in college and we went through up's and down's together and were by my side as I found out who I was and who they were. Now, I meet people all the time through various channels and we become friends but the bond just isn't the same. They seem more like wanders who spend some time in my life, help me grow, help me along in a difficult time and then they go away either due to marriage, a baby, an argument, etc but they are more like drifters than long lasting friends. It is sad but I feel more compelled to work at my friendships from college and keep those connections no matter the distance than I do with folks that I met later in life. I am not saying this is right by any means. Somtimes I feel like my college friends "know" me better but in reality, they know some version of me that probably doesn't exist any more and the folks I meet now on this journey of life probably know me better. But I don't think we let the walls/boundaries down now as we did back in college so maybe the only person that knows me is really me.