When we think about high school, we all think about that crazy group of people we spent every minute of our lives with. These people were there for you through all your adolescent ups and downs and we cannot possibly be more thankful to have had them in our lives. This is an open letter to my high school friend group.
Thank you all for accepting me for all the quirks and joining me in mutual weirdness. I love to think back on the times that we all laughed for hours at two o'clock in the morning because we stayed up too late eating ice cream again. And thank you for always being up for eating ice cream. Our inside jokes are my favorite and I sometimes forget that the friends I have past high school won't understand why I laugh so hard when I see a bagel cutter.
Thank you for going through your awkward phases with me. We all know what that means--side bangs, enough said. I cannot thank you enough for always telling me I was beautiful on my worst days and never letting me think negatively of myself. I can only hope that I did the same for you. Growing up is hard enough without friends putting you down. I am so happy I had a group that showered each other with positivity.
Thank you for always confronting me when there was a problem. Instead of going behind my back, you would come talk to me about it. So many teenage friend groups are riddled with rumors and backstabbing but ours was full of confrontation; not that we needed it often. It helped prepare me for the 'real world' and all the people that will not like what I have to say all the time. It taught me how to handle anything that life throws at me.
Thank you for encouraging me to try new things. I never thought I would find myself on stage, but you guys pushed to audition for my first play. By doing theater, I gained endless memories. It was like a second family and I love to watch the videos of our performances and see you guys shrine bright on that stage.
Thank you for going your separate way. I know when we graduated we all promised that our friendship would never fade out. We said we would always stay in touch. That doesn't always happen; that's okay and thank you for it. It taught me that not everything in life is permanent, and we need to learn to accept that. If we hadn't grown apart, we never would have branched out and made the new friendships that we love so much today. We wouldn't have all the memories we now have from the past four years. Sure, I look back and laugh at all of our memories and wish I could laugh at them with you by my side but I will always consider you guys my best friends, no matter far apart we may grow.
Most importantly, thank you to the ones who promised to always be a part of my life. Thank you for understanding that life gets busy and we cannot talk every day. For knowing that just because I choose to hang out with other friends every weekend for two months doesn't mean that I no longer care or have forgotten about you. Thank you for always picking back up right where we left off no matter how long it has been and never questioning it.
Whether you're still in my life or not, high school contains some of my most cherished memories. Thank you guys for being the ones to make that happen. You will always mean the world to me and I promise to love and support you in all of life's adventures. Thank you for being my best friends.
