I'm 19 years old. And in time, I'm learning who I am and want to become. I'm a firm believer that everyone comes into and out of my life for a reason. I haven't always been so accepting of the part where people leave, but that's slowly changed as I've grown older. I was recently told that my best friend is transferring to a university across the country. To put that into perspective, it will be 2,151 miles from me to him. Like I said before, I'm convinced that there's a reason people come and go, but I've found myself looking for justification why someone was positioned into my daily life only to be taken out two years later when everything around me seems to fit perfectly.

Now, I'm seven years old again. My mom just placed a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle in front of me in my playroom, and I'm excited. I laboriously search to find a space for each piece to fit, and I arrive at a place where one of the sections I chose to work on piece-by-piece finally looks whole. I work on other sections and complete them with a sense of accomplishment.

A day filled with fun and games later, I realize someone accidentally bumped into my puzzle and a piece is clearly missing. I feel frantic. Something I meticulously built and exerted my efforts into now feels incomplete and broken. After a search is performed for the little jigsaw piece, I begin to give up.

The next morning, I wake up and hop out of bed. As I search for my blue slippers, I locate a piece beside them on the floor--yes, the piece. A wave of relief crashes over me. The puzzle is still together regardless of the absence of the piece, it's just that the missing piece was in the other room. The missing piece doesn't make the puzzle any less of a puzzle, it doesn't make every other piece irrelevant, and it doesn't keep the other pieces from fitting together.

I'm 19 again, and my life is much like a puzzle. A piece is soon going to go missing. When someone transfers, moves, etc., it's a sweeping adjustment for everyone involved. What's important to remember is that this person brought several lessons, experiences, and memories into my life, and they will stay in my life enduringly, regardless of if they can't be there every day.

To my friend who is going to start a new life in a new place, thank you for being the puzzle piece that always finds it's way to turn up. When you go, I know my life won't break without you, and I won't be frantic. Thank you for being my go-to lunch guy, my male perspective, a shoulder to lean on, and a person to hold my wedges on a long walk home from the bars. Most importantly, thank you for staying true to yourself. Your transfer is what's best for you, and by courageously making this decision, you've exemplified the importance of never settling and constantly striving for happiness; two things that are essential to a healthy life. I may not be able to put this piece back where it once belonged, but there's a comfort in being in the position of knowing this piece is not lost, it is simply just in the next room.