Friends Who Drift Apart

One thing I've realized in life, and it's a depressing realization, is that some friendships, no matter how close, will inevitably fade to where your once close friend becomes just like a casual acquaintance. I know that life's circumstances will cause people who are best friends to drift apart... work, family, distance, etc. and especially people who are best friends in school, once they leave school and they go their seperate ways, it's hard to maintain that close friendship.

I've experienced this, having a close friendship fade out like an old pair of jeans. This one particular friend, we were best friends for several years, talked on the phone almost every day, hung out all the time, and had each other's backs in everything. Those years seem like forever ago, because now that friend feels like just an acquaintance, like the history we had doesn't really hold much value anymore.

So, how many of y'all have gone through this, having a once close bond be disintegrated over time?