To My Twin,

Let me start off by saying that I am very grateful for you and all the things you have shown me over the years. We have a bond like no other, and even if we do bicker on occasion, I know at the end of the day we are always going to have each other. I find comfort, inspiration and love in you, my best friend.

Thank you for showing me I will never be alone. Having a twin means having a forever friend and companion. Whenever I need someone to talk to, no matter the time of day or distance apart, you always find a way to make it happen. If I need to be on the phone in silence, you are the person I can call to just be with. If I need to talk about anything and everything, you are the person I can call to rant and blabber to. If I need to cry, you are the person I know I can call and just let it all out, judgement-free. When I feel like I don’t have anyone to turn to, you will always be there, and I can not tell you how much that means to me.

Thank you for proving I always have someone going through the same thing. Being the same age comes in handy because we both help each other out as we both experience roughly the same things. We went through all of our phases together: being obsessed with American Girl Dolls, loving the Junie B. Jones books, constantly wearing our pink and purple clogs around the house, wearing matching clothes that Mom picked out for us and so much more. When we went for our driving tests, we were both trying to calm each other down on the way there. And when I didn’t pass the first time, you did and then drove me around without complaint for the two weeks until I did pass. When it came time, applying to college was so much easier because you and I both were working on similar applications, and could each help each other develop the best answers to the tough questions. And later, we figured out how the heck to fill out student loan applications and the intimidating FAFSA (with the help of our awesome mom).

Thank you for always looking out for me. You sometimes act like another parent to me, except you are usually beside me, doing the same stupid thing that you will yell at me the next morning for. But really, you have shown me how much you care about my safety and my happiness. And even when you cannot physically be there protecting me, a text checking to make sure I got home okay shows your commitment. You are the toughest critic of new people in my life, but you are also the biggest supporter when you realize how great they are.

Thank you for showing me that you know me more than I know myself. I would not be the same without your constant presence, comfort, and protection. Thank you for just going with it when someone calls you by my name and allowing people to refer to us as "the twins." Even though we are “the twins,” we are also separate individuals and I am so proud of you and all you have done so far in the past 18 years. It’s a new adventure going to different colleges, but I am so proud of both of us for following our hearts. And as we are growing up, I am confident that we will never grow apart.

I love you,

Your Twin Sister