Sitting on the back seat of the car, my right cheek pressing against the car window, I listen to the idle chatter of my parents. Slowly, my mind drifts away. I remember all the good times I had with my CTY (Center for Talented Youth) summer camp friends. For a moment I drown myself in self pleasure, complimenting myself for making such great friends. The moment passes and I’m back to reality, camp is over, and I will probably never see them again.

CTY is an international program and residential summer camp. This means that kids from all around the world can come to the camp. It also means that I get to hear all sorts of stories ranging from seeing celebrities walking their dogs on the streets to living in the middle of nowhere. But the down side means that most of the friends I make at camp live nowhere near where I live. So once camp is over, I will probably never see my CTY friends ever again.

When the last day of camp came around the corner, and the moment came to say bye to everyone I met at camp, a wave of grief washed over me. This was the day I had dreaded the most ever since camp started. Eating, sleeping, going to class, practically doing everything together made it seem like I had known these people for years rather than just three weeks. Camp had become a part of me, so leaving camp felt like I was leaving behind a part of my soul. It was almost unbearable.
But the tsunami of pain and grief did not hit me immediately; it hit me a few days after I arrived home. It was then I realized I had nothing to do, no daily routine, no constant studying, and no busy schedule. And most importantly, no summer camp friends! The more I thought about it, the more depressed and lonely I felt. Every time someone said something, I would respond by quoting one of my friends from camp and then feel sad again.

As the saying goes, “Make new friends, but keep the old, one is silver while the other is gold.” I would have to eventually move on, right? Wrong. Everyday I think about my CTY summer camp friends, remembering all the fun times we had together, like the sleepovers, classes and the mealtimes. And everyday I wonder if I will ever see their bright smiles and hear their joyful laughter again. Of course I still keep in touch with them through email. But I know I will never be able to completely move on, because they are my dearest friends. The memories we share will always stay in my heart, and I treasure those memories very much.