I was blessed (and still am) with a really strong group of friends in my hometown, so going off to school without them worried me. We all have known each other almost our whole lives, and within a matter of a few months we were in new cities, at new schools, and surrounded by new people. At first, I was nervous about how to redo the friend making process, and all the older students told me to cut all ties with my high school friends. "It will help make the transition easier." "You won't be friends with them forever." "Real friendships are made in college." But I didn't believe them. The Girl Scouts of America have a song that goes "make new friends but keep the old; one is silver and the other gold." I have realized in the 3 short weeks i've been in Waco that it is possible, but it does require sacrifices.

No, you won't have to sacrifice friendships, but you might have to sacrifice some time and data, and possibly a weekend here and there. It was a huge relief to know that throughout all the awkward introductions I could FaceTime some of my high school friends. We swap stories of meeting people in uncomfortable situations, and laugh at the similar experiences we share. One of the sacrifices though, is knowing that you can't spend every minute talking to them because you do have to get out and build new friendships. My two worlds collided this past weekend and it has been one of my favorite memories so far. Being able to introduce my old friends to my new home was not only exciting but reassuring that I could do this whole college thing. People may tell you that you can't make new friends while keeping the old, but if the old are worth keeping around, then I say go for it.