Friendship needs care and attention to keep it in good health. Here are five ways to sustain（保持）long-distance friendships.
● Set a regular date
Long-lasting friendships share the characteristic that both sides equally contact（联系）and share with one another. With busy schedules, squeezing in phone calls can be a challenge.
● More isn't always merrier
Make sure you have communicated with your friend about how frequently each of you wants to be contacted and what method works best for you both. . There are alternatives to constant written communication, such as leaving voice messages or having a group chat.
● Practise empathy（共情）
. The friend who is remaining needs to be sensitive to all the additional time demands placed on the friend who has moved. The one in the new environment should be sympathetic to the fact that your friend may feel abandoned.
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Anniversaries and birthdays carry even more weight in long-distance friendships. Although technology might make day-to-day communication possible, extra effort goes a long way on special days. Simply keeping a diary that keeps track of friends' birthdays and other important dates will make sure nothing slips by you.
● Don't rely on technology alone
, but long-distance friendships - even close ones - may require more conscious effort to sustain. Try to seek out chances to renew friendships. How to do it? Just spend face-to-face time together whenever possible.
A. Remember important dates
B. Compensate by writing letters
C. It is also helpful for you to be a friendship keeper
D. Try to find a time that works for both of you and stick to it
E. Friends need to talk about their preferred methods of communication
F. It is easy to have a sense of connectedness through social media
G. You may be the friend who left or the one who was left behind
