Dear High School Friends,

We didn't make it past high school. We sure had some fun times and a lot of firsts, but we didn't really know each other. High school is a time to learn who you are and grow into who you are going to be, but it's also a place that keeps your true identity stifled and stagnant until you can be out on your own in the college world. I guess we realized that past the four walls of high school, past the cliques and 7 a.m.-2 p.m. classes, there wasn't much we connected on. We felt safe and friendly toward one another and we even made plans to be each other's bridesmaids, but it wasn't meant to happen. You don't know who you really are in high school and even though it seems like these friends are true and loyal and that you may keep them forever, it becomes apparently obvious on graduation day who you are going to keep in your life and who you are not. It would be a lot easier if we could have stayed friends, kept in touch, and kept up on each other's lives, but we were too different and we were too far apart. You stayed in town and I went to Orlando. You worked a lot and I was lucky enough to not have to get a job right away. Our interests were far from one another and we had different wants and needs. I think it was a mutual understanding that things were falling apart and neither one us tried to keep it afloat. Coming back from college and trying to mend ties with those from high school is not an easy task and sometimes it is just impossible. Friends in high school are fun to have, and they are good to hang out with, but as you grow older and wiser you realize that quality is much better than quantity and because of this sometimes not everyone can stay a part of everyone else's life. I wish all of you the best because you helped me with the hardest years of my life: high school, and for that, I am forever grateful. Even if we ended on a sour note or attend schools across the country, I'll always wish the best for all of you because even though we didn't make it as a huge part of each other's lives, we did play a part in helping the other become who they were meant to be. High school is no walk in the park and even though I am reflecting on this as a junior in college, I still think about those friends that I had that didn't come with me to college. To all my "relationships" that didn't work out or my long forgotten group of friends, I want to thank you because without you I wouldn't have realized what I deserve and I wouldn't appreciate the people who are going to stay in my life forever as much as I do today.