Dear newest best friends:

I've been home from school for a few days now and honestly, I can't believe it. A piece of the shock is the fact that my first year of college has actually come to a close, but I know that a huge part of this odd feeling stems from the fact that I will be miles instead of feet away from some of my closest friends. Now, while I am sitting on my bed at home rather than my bed in my dorm room, I am feeling sentimental and nostalgic, so there is no better time for me to write this letter about how much you all really mean to me.

Most friendships take years to fully develop. People need time to get to know one another to the point of considering someone a best friend. College, though, changes that entire dynamic. I was lucky enough to live with or incredibly close to all of you. That was the biggest blessing that I had been given during my first year in college because having such close access to such amazing people made my experience a thousand times better and more memorable. Dinner dates were daily, rather than occasionally like they are at home. Schedules were more flexible in college than high school, which allowed me to spend more time with all of you. I am so thankful for every second of it.

The friendships that I have formed with all of you are so different than the ones I have with my friends from home. My friends from home and I have old stories and childhood memories, but with all of you, we have different types of tales. We all entered freshman year together, all clueless and even a bit nervous. Together, we were able to grow. We went through tough times of homesickness, heartache, distress or even just bad luck together, but we also had some of the best times together. Through these deep emotional -- both good and bad, of course -- experiences, I was able to open up to all of you and in doing so, allow all of you to open up to me.

I adore my friends at home, but my relationships with all of you are so incredibly special. I do not open up to people very easily, but you all made it so easy. After spending hours and hours with all of you DAILY, I was able to feel so comfortable so quickly. I knew that I had found my people; my lifelong friends that I could count on when I needed them. With all of you, I felt that I could crack my cheesy jokes without feeling judged. In fact, I was encouraged to do so. You all gave me the confidence to be me when I was so nervous going into college to begin with.

Even if we do end up drifting apart in the future, I know that you will always hold such a special place in my heart. You all are the reasons that my freshman year, my first and most impressionable year of college, was so amazing. You are the centers of my memories, the reasons for my laughs and some of the best friends I have ever had. I will never be able to forget all of the moments that we have shared and I know that we will make so many more as soon as we come back to campus.

They say that times flies when you are having fun and I have definitely experienced that this year. Some of the best moments of my life have occurred with all of you by my side, so it's not surprising that my first year of college seemed to finish in the blink of an eye. I hope that this trend stops because I want to be able to revel in each moment of the rest of my college career. I can only imagine what great times it holds for me.

Before I wrap up this letter, I want to thank all of you for all that you have done for me. Like every other incoming college freshman, I was uncertain and even a bit terrified of what college would hold for me. I crossed my fingers and made wishes on stars that I would be able to surround myself with genuinely kind, caring and compassionate people. My wishes were answered tenfold. When I say that I am blessed to have come to know all of you, I really do mean it. You have made such an incredible impact on my life and the person that I am. I will never be able to thank you enough for that.

I will see you all soon. As my mom always taught me: never say goodbye, because goodbye means permanence, you will just see them soon. So, I will see you soon. There are 100 days of our summer vacation and I know that they, like our times spent together, will absolutely fly. I love you all.

Love your grateful friend,

Meg