Growing up, I always knew it was special that I had young parents.
My dad and mom had me at 19 and 21, respectively and from the moment I was born we had a special connection and unbreakable bond that seemed to break the normal parent-child relationships I'd encountered.
For example, when my dad proposed to my mom, I was on his lap. I was a year and a half and had no clue what was going on. Six months later I walked down the aisle as the flower girl in their wedding.
I stayed with my grandparents while they honeymooned in Florida. I moved with them from apartment to apartment to eventually their first home together. They painted my walls pink and filled my childhood with princesses and more stuffed animals than I could ever wish for.
They were the underdogs, nobody thought they would make it. But they did. All three of us did.
When I turned 4 they had my first brother and our family grew from there on out. Two more brothers arrived in the next few years and eventually we were a family of 6 close knit indiviudals that all shared one bathroom.
Even though I had three little brothers, I still felt more connected to my parents than ever. I was the only girl, the princess. I was the eldest. I was the ring leader and the role model and I took those titles in stride.
I've developed more anxiety than I can take throughout my life. With that anxiety came the battle of OCD and depression that seems to come and go in waves every Winter.
I've struggled with making friends and finding my place, but at the end of the day I always knew that I would be coming home to two people who loved me ridiculously and unconditionally. Friends come and go, but family is forever; and in my lucky case my family also happens to be my friends.
My mom has stuck by my side through thick and thin. Hormonal and emotional rollercoasters, crushes gone wrong, mean girls, and extreme anxiety. She thought me to feel what I'm feeling, but also to toughen up and be the brave girl that I am.
She has been through so much in her life and she's thought me that those experiences don't have to define who you are, they just add to your character. From her I have learned that my anxiety is not something that has to tear me down, it can be something that I overcame with my strength.
My dad is everything. He is my role model in so many ways that even he doesn't know. He is insanely talented. As a father, husband, worker, and musician. He can really do it all, and even though he is busy raising four kids and working a full time job he never let any of that take away from his own personal goals.
From him I've learned that anything that life throws at you just adds to your success, it doesn't take away from it. He's gotten us involved in the making of music and thought us to adore records as much as he does (sometimes even more). He is the ultimate underdog, and continues to show me every day what hard work and dedication looks like.
These two humans are the people that I call my best friends. That's unconventional, and maybe even a little strange, but it's so true.
I don't need to surround myself with anyone else when my life is filled with these two inspiring individuals. When it seems like everyone else is gone and my world is falling apart, these two remind me that I'm not alone. I am a product of the two most incredible people I have ever known, and I couldn't be more grateful.
To conclude, in the wise of words of Rory Gilmore, "Thank you, mom and dad. You are my guideposts for everything."
