It is crazy to think that eight months have quickly come and gone. Before coming to school, I was nervous. Nervous I would miss home, nervous I wouldn’t be able to keep up with my new college workload, and most of all nervous I would not make friends. However, I could not have been more wrong. The friends I have made have quickly made school feel like home, and for that I owe them all a huge thank you.

Thank you for being there for the majority of my college “firsts”. I could not have made it through my first college party, sorority rushing or first finals week without you all by my side. No matter the problem, big or small, I always knew I could count on you if I needed a shoulder to cry on or snacks to munch on.

Thank you for never making me eat alone in the dining hall and for responding to all my ridiculous texts in the groupchat. Through the countless links, videos and pictures, you guys have never failed to respond with a witty comment that can make me laugh on even my worst of days. You were the ones I went too if I needed to borrow clothes for another formal or wanted someone to vent to at 2am.

Thank you for the car rides where we would blast music and sing at the top of our lungs. You are always up to try crazy ideas someone has and that’s led to some of our best memories. Thank you for pretending to like country music, encouraging me to eat that piece of chocolate cake and always giving me a hard time for how I say the word “bagel” (even though I say it the way it is supposed to be said).

Above all, I am thankful for the times you have made me laugh until I cried or the nights where we would sit around talking about anything and everything. I did not come to college expecting to make friends like you all but I am so lucky that I did.

Here is to three more years full of country music, dinner dates, and all of the memories to come. Hopefully you all will learn how to properly say the word “bagel” in that time.