To the person I am thankful for,

First of all, thank you! Thank you for being the one person I know I can always count on. Thank you for listening to my endless grumblings about petty life problems like crappy professors and even crappier dining-hall food. Thank you for being my work out buddy and also my Krispy Kreme donut-run partner. Thank you for sharing the occasional Friday night to watch movies or bake calorie/sugar/fat-free goodies. In short, thanks for doing life with me.

It’s not often that one finds someone like you so easily. I am so thankful to have someone who shares many of my interests. I know that I can sit across the dinner table from you and talk about both the reality of the unattainable perfect behind as well as what it really means to be happy with your life. Not many people can have such a variety of conversation over dirty dinner dishes and still want to stick around for dessert.

I am thankful for your drive to be successful in all that you do. You are persistent in your study habits and work hard at everything you do. You are conscious of what you eat but never condemn me when all I can think about is finding myself a brownie to cram into my mouth. Thank you for pushing me to be the best that I can be, even when you don’t say anything at all. Thank you for leading by example.

Thank you for all the laughter you have given me. You know exactly when I need a giggle and you know the times when it’s the last thing I want to do. Thank you for being goofy with me and being patient with my terrible sense of humor when we both know that I am far from being funny.

Thank you for holding me accountable. You push me toward Christ even when you don’t mean to and you encourage me to become the best version of myself that I can be. You don’t let me sink into old habits or get caught up in negativity when I’ve had four crappy days in a row. Thanks for all the stupid text messages you send that make me laugh out loud in the midst of my tantrums.

Thank you for being great and for loving me in all the ways I never knew I wanted to be loved. I’m thankful that you’ve stuck around and I hope you will stay a little longer. You have clearly earned the highest of honors: you’re my favorite gal pal. Stay cool!