Should I Say “Good Bye” to My Old Friendship?
“I Won’t Call Anymore…”
The WhatsApp message stared back at me, cold and final:
I won’t call you anymore. I’ll only message when necessary. I’ve had enough of always bending to your way — ‘only 20 minutes’ or ‘I have work to help X’ — leaving me feeling dismissed and useless for days afterward.
“I get it now. You never really needed my friendship; you only accepted it because I kept offering it. So, let’s stick to text messages when it’s required.”
I reread the message in disbelief, but strangely, I wasn’t surprised.
My friend had often said she needed more time — more connection — and our conversations always felt rushed to her. I thought I was doing my best to accommodate her… so why wasn’t it working?
Guilt, Then Frustration
First, was the guilt: Was I doing something wrong?
But that guilt quickly turned into frustration. “What about me? What about how I feel after our conversations?”
Because the truth is, more than I’d like to admit, I would look at her name on my screen and think “Yellow warning of negativity”! Then I would brace myself for the conversation — some small talk, stories about our kids, memories of the past… complaints.