Dear Coworker-Turned-Best Friend,
I am so damn lucky to have met you. There’s no other way to say it. You are one of the closest people in my life, you embrace my family (and my pets), and you’re always good for a sleepover, trip to the diner, or a walk around our campuses. You’re both a confidant and a comedian, and you accept me for me. Basically, you’re everything a best friend should be, and I love you for that, but we started from humble beginnings.
Do you know I remember your first work shift? I remember training you as the register, and, admittingly, being hesitant of you. It’s not every day you get a new coworker, and you’re never really sure how they’re going to turn out. It was your first job, just like it had been mine, but I was there for almost a year and feeling pretty good about myself. But, to be honest, I was intimidated by you at first--you were confident, good at your job, and a true comedian. Not that the cash register was a difficult job, I had just seen many people come and go from the restaurant. But you were patient, did well with customers, and were willing to talk to me, and that was enough for me like you.
Quickly we feel into our coworker stride--hoping we were scheduled together so I’d have someone to talk to, asking our manager to be placed on the same side of the restaurant, making friends with regulars so they knew us both. Then we got closer--we had inside jokes about the restaurant and customers (and even other coworkers), shared our frustrations and joys about working, talked about high school and plans for college, but still, we were close coworkers more than anything. It would still take a bit for us to become friends.
It starts with texting each other to ask about the schedule (and probably complaining about it), then texting stories of work with them because it cannot wait until the next work shift together. We followed each other on social media and began to learn about each other's families. We carpooled a few times, which turned into hanging out at work, then after work, and then we were hanging out basically all the time. We met each other's friends and explored each other's hometowns. We stressed about college, boyfriends, and work itself, and three years later, never would have assumed we'd still be working at the place that started the whole friendships.
Here we are. We’re college students, dog moms, foodies, best friends, and coworkers. Work is frustrating, and balancing it with classes and extracurricular activities certainly isn’t easy, but you make it so much better. Without you, work would be so much worse, and my life just wouldn’t be the same. Bonding over the register may not be everyone’s BFF story, but I’m so glad it’s ours, and I promise to support you from our 1st job to our 50th.
Sincerely,
Your BFF Coworker
