My story is a classic – I met my best friend in middle school, and by the time we’d graduated high school and become college roommates, we were sure that nothing was ever going to come between us. We didn’t knock on the front door at each other’s houses, we didn’t ask before raiding the refrigerator, and we bought each other’s parents Christmas/birthday/anniversary gifts, because well, they were our parents too. We were still teenagers, probably not in relationships, and maybe still in high school when we decided that we would be each other’s Maids of Honor.
Ever heard the saying “once you’ve been friends with someone for 7 years, you will most likely be friends for life”? Let me be the first (probably not really the first) to tell you... 7, 10, 15 years... It does not matter. Sometimes, friendships fall apart. Sometimes they “die in their sleep,” and sometimes they’re brutally mobbed and beaten to death. Mine was definitely blindsided, and in a matter of what only felt like moments, it was like we’d never even met.
So here’s to the friend who showed up when I thought I had no one:
I was a third year sophomore (don’t get me started) in college, and for some reason, I decided that although it wasn’t necessary, I was going to take Human A&P. Bad decision. The first day of class and I see one familiar face, but only familiar because of Facebook really. She was the type of girl who I’d never befriend. But, I sat by her anyway. Class together turns into study sessions, which turns into lunch dates, which turns into sitting in our cars outside of class for hours at a time, laugh-crying (occasionally just crying) until we’re oxygen-deprived and blue.
Thank you for opening your heart and lending your ears when I needed them most. Thank you for answering your phone at 3 a.m. when I’m having a bad night and just want to cry to someone. Thank you for surprise visits to Oxford, followed by weekends we barely remember. Thank you for being a constant light in my life and encouraging me when I feel like I’m on rock bottom. Thank you for telling me that “he’s not good enough for me” and “he doesn’t deserve me,” because you don’t want to see me settle. Thank you for telling me when you’re proud of me, and more importantly, for telling me when I’m being an absolute idiot. You’re the sister I always wanted, and I can never thank you enough.
Finding a best friend in your 20s is completely life-changing. I mean think about it – we change so much in our teenage years, through middle school, high school, and starting college – we may as well not even be the same person anymore. To find someone who accepts your transformed, worn-out soul is a big deal!
So, I believe that the BEST best friends we can have, are the ones we find in our 20’s… when we expect them the least, and we need them the most.
