Most of us are at the point in the year where move-out is upon us, so this means saying goodbye to our roommates. If you're anything like me, your college roommate has become one of your best, lifelong friends. In fact, he or she has probably been the only good thing about living in the dorms. Sadly, this goodbye is final for me and my roomie, since she is transferring to another campus. As hard as it is seeing her go, I'm so thankful for the year we got to spend together which makes this moment so hard. So whether your roomie will be with you for another three years or this is your last goodbye, here are some thank you's that we may not have said before we left.

Thank you for being my first friend at college.

The weeks leading up to move-in were brutal. I had so much anxiety about what college was going to be like and who I was going to be. More importantly, I was faced with the reality of doing pot-luck for a roommate. After hearing horror stories about awful roommates, this terrified me. Every day during the summer, I refreshed and refreshed until I could find out the name of who was going to be living with me the next semester. Whenever I found out, I immediately stalked you on every social media platform possible. I even found your old Youtube account that you hadn't used except for class projects. We hardly talked the days leading up to move in, but the day I walked into room 618 was the day I felt at home. You wrapped me in your arms the moment you saw me and I knew that we were going to be friends. Little did I know that you would turn out to be one of the best friends I have ever made. For that, I am so thankful.

Thank you for being a light.

Back at home, I had so many great women who lifted me up. From best friends to small-group leaders to employers, these women shaped me into who I am today. Leaving all of that behind for college, I was worried I would fall into the college lifestyle while not being surrounded by these people I had leaned on for so long. Ultimately, I had doubted God's plan for me. I had created the worst possible scenario in my head of how college would end up and truly believed that college would not be a good experience without my best friend by my side. God proved that I was being foolish by giving me you. From the first day together, I was amazed at the amount of faith you had. As you hung up canvases of scriptures you painted, it was like walking into a new culture. I had been Christian for awhile, but I had never seen faith lived out so graciously. I watched you daily as you gave your time to God and never strayed from Him. God created such a perfect way for me to witness Him like never before by giving me one of His most special followers. The light He has given you is so bright that it has made me even more faithful to Him. I cannot thank you enough for being so devoted to Him and continuing to press into Him, even when times were hard. The more you were poured into by Him, the more it overflowed onto me and everyone you met.

Thank you for listening.

Growing up, I always considered myself more of a listener than a talker. I liked to share experiences, but I preferred to listen to others. If I had a problem, I'd rather keep it inside than share with someone. However, after living with you I have realized just how much I can talk. With you, I feel as if I could talk about anything for hours. You never get tired or annoyed with my words and always add to my conversation. I can always count on you to laugh along with me or be concerned for the people in my life, just as if you had been alongside me growing up. You took the time to familiarize yourself with the people who I cared most about back home and made sure to really know who they were. These are some of the most important people in my life, and it meant so much to me when you would say, "Oh, is that the person who..." or, "She's the one you met from..." You did not have to do any of this, yet you always made sure to listen with an open heart and mind. My heart is so grateful for the countless hours you listened to my words.

Thank you for always letting me borrow your stuff.

This is pretty comical when you think about just how many bobby pins and makeup wipes I have used from you. I'm so thankful that you have never been aggravated or even shown that you were annoyed when I take your stuff. Even that one time I accidentally threw away your face soap (which I am still sorry about!), you give me grace and we could laugh about it in the end anyways. Your giving heart has helped me in some of my most crucial hair moments which I could not be more thankful for. I actually don't know what I will do when you don't live with me anymore and I am down to the last drop of my hair conditioner.

Thank you for being my best friend.

Coming into college I believed I would have a friend group, but did not bet on being super close with my roommate. I had read so many stories about people who had a distant relationship with their roommates and truly believed in order to have a "healthy" college lifestyle, we needed distance. However, after the first week, I realized just how mistaken I was. We ended up doing everything together which led to our bond being even stronger. From late-night Whataburger runs to studying together in silence in the dorm, we really did end up together a lot. I don't know of anyone else who I could tolerate for so long under such circumstances, but you made it seem like it was a breeze. As we got closer and closer, I deeply cared about you and your well-being. When we walked through some of the darkest moments of the year, I knew we could count on each other to wipe the tears away and bring laughter in the midst of darkness. I have grown to understand you deeply and vice versa. You have pushed me to grow and pursue my passions, even when I doubt myself and my potential. There hasn't been a day that's gone by where you haven't encouraged me to put my dreams into action. If it weren't for your supportive pushes all year long, I wouldn't have half of the things in my life that I do today. I hope you know just how loved and cherished you are by me. Our friendship is something that I hope will never fade away.

I could list a thousand thank you's and it wouldn't be enough to cover all the things I am thankful for from you. I truly wish everyone in college could have the same experience I did with my roommate because my whole college experience was changed. Through the roller coaster that is college, I have realized that home is not your environment; home is where there are people who love you and care for you, which is why I have found the best home this past year. Saying goodbye to you is going to be really, really difficult but I know that this past year has changed me for the better in every way possible, all because of you. I love and cherish you, and can't wait for your new adventure and what lies ahead at your new school!