Dear Margaret,
Thank you. Thank you for showing me that it's okay to be weird, that it's okay to be myself when no one else would accept me. Thank you for showing me that it's better to have two or three good friends than a clique in high school. That you don't always need to keep up with the latest trends, but better to start you own.
From the first day I met you, I knew you'd be cool. You had pink streaks in your hair and could kick a soccer ball from one end of the field to the next. We waited for our parents to pick us up and I asked if you needed a ride. I had no idea that you would be a year younger than me, or that your brother would be in the same Italian class. Throughout that season we talked a bit, always had a partner to kick the ball, too, or an extra buddy to go to the mall with, but it wasn't until winter where we became best friends. I asked you if you had a sport to play and you said you considered track since your brothers do it. I had to convince you that you should do it though, for you didn't want to get stuck running long distance.
To this day I'm not sure what drove you to agree to a random person and to sign up for such an intense sport but I'm so glad you did.
Thank you for running countless floors of stairs with me. For hanging in the back on those long painful runs. The repetition of hurdle workouts that made our hips sore, and our legs tired. Thank you for standing on the line with me for long jump even though it wasn't your event. For wishing me luck seconds before a race, even when we were going against each other.
Fast forward another year and we've already become joined at the hip. I find it funny how you can only meet someone one year ago but feel like you've known them forever. We both decided to quit soccer together, thinking we could train for winter track on our own. Boy were we wrong! Ever since we became friends, no one knew that you were a year younger than me, for you did always look older.
From the first fights with my old friends to the second break up with the same boy, you've always stood by my side. From random mall dates with weird guys to girl time alone in each others' room, thank you for always giving me a shoulder to cry on, someone to complain to about the girls in school who think they know everything.
Because of you, I felt confident in my own skin, like who I was was good enough. Before you, there were friends, there were boys, and there were just random people that I felt I needed to change for in order to make myself feel liked, to feel like I was worth their friendship. I felt I needed more likes on my photos, to buy more expensive clothing, to see how much I could hold down, or how many guys I could hook up with. But with you, I don’t need that. We’ll always be each other’s “11th” like when we need that extra push, we’ll party hard just the two of us in sweat pants and baggy t-shirts. To hell with the “slutty” clothing, you don’t need to show your body to prove you're having a good time, or that you can get more guys than the “other” girls can.
So thank you, Margaret. Thank you for letting me be me, and for reminding me when I’m not feeling like I’m good enough. Thank you for giving me the reason I needed to stay true to myself.
I love you forever best frand,
Jackie
