This summer I got rid of the toxic people in my life. It's one of the best decisions I have ever made. I had the most incredible friends, and I will forever appreciate them for as long as I live. They taught me so many lessons, we shared so many jokes and laughs, but most importantly, they were my absolute best friends. I never went one day without seeing at least one of my friends- I loved hanging out with them, and I never said no to hanging out because I enjoyed their company that much.

So why'd I cut them off? There comes a time in life that hopefully everyone will get a chance to experience, like I did. I realized on graduation day, that I didn't know as many people in my grade as I wanted to. Yeah I knew everybody’s name, but I didn't know everybody. It was a real eye opener on that day. I realized that for the past couple years, I've sheltered myself with these people, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but that's not me. I wanted to get to know people in my grade, I wanted to know more about the people I spent the last four years with, and I got so caught up with my friends, that I didn't get to do any of that.

I also realized I was completely blocked in by these people, and I didn't really know anyone going to my college. None of my friends were going to the same school as me, so I had to branch myself out and meet new friends. My old friends all had someone going to the same school as them, so they didn't have to worry about that, but I sure did. It was so hard to find friends that were like my friends from home, people that I could be my real self around, and not have to walk on egg shells around. I found my people at college, and I couldn't be more thankful.

There are people that you want in your life and there are people you need in your life. I came to a big realization this past year of who I wanted, and who I needed. You need people in your life that you can be yourself around, and not be shy about who you are. You need people in your life that share the same interests as you, that you can trust with anything, and people that have your best interest at heart.

Right now, at college I've already found the people that I need in my life. Some people find those friends in high school, some people find them in college, and some people find them when they're much older, and that's okay. But as a P.S.A. to everyone, stop surrounding yourself with people that you don't consider a real friend, and by real friend, I mean someone that you actually NEED in your life.