Have you ever met someone that makes you question how you ever did life before you knew them? The person you run to first when you receive good news, the one you look to for advice, and the one you know your life wouldn’t be the same without. For me, it’s Alyssa, my best friend of six years. While I can’t recall the exact moment we became BFF’s, I know it was sometime back in seventh grade, which was nothing shy of being the most awkward phase of our lives. Luckily for us, we didn’t let each other’s braces or Abercrombie shirt collections keep us from being best friends. I had always been told that high school will change you as a person, and that it was okay if you didn’t leave with the same friends you entered with. Fortunately, though our friend groups evolved, we stuck together. Today, we are exactly 207 miles away at different universities and our friendship is still going strong. Being three hours away from your best friend, versus the fifteen-minute drive we’ve always known, makes every opportunity that we get to see each other more valuable. We know each other’s strengths (and weaknesses), have spent time with each other’s family as if they’re our own, and can make each other laugh so hard we cry (in person or even over a text message!). We’ve helped each other compose texts to that certain boy, and been there for each other when he doesn’t text back. We’ve traveled to Florida together on spring break, which made for a week- long vacation neither of us will ever forget. We’ve broken curfews together (sorry mom) and seen each other cry. We’ve gone on countless road trips and eaten way too much ice cream together (just kidding, there’s no such thing as too much ice cream). We endured two years of high school lacrosse with each other, before we both decided it wasn’t the sport for us. Junior year, as we put on our makeup and got dressed up for prom, we didn’t realize we would laugh about the things that happened that night for the rest of our lives. Each year, we celebrate The Fourth of July like it’s Christmas, as we sing along to “Born in the U.S.A” while we drive to the lake. She accepts the obsession I have with my birthday (birth month, let’s be honest), and celebrates with me accordingly. When graduation day came, we drove together to the ceremony and talked about how we couldn’t believe this day had finally come. In late August, when the time came to finally say goodbye to each other as we left for school, we reminisced on the best times we’ve shared together, and cried in the parking lot of the restaurant as we hugged goodbye. She’ll always be there to support me during the good times and cheer me up through the worst times. It’s the greatest feeling to know I’ll always have her as my best friend, and there’s no one else I’d rather share a million memories with.
