First off, a big thank you for all the sacrifices you've made for me to attend my dream school I'll be moving into shortly. You do things for me I could simply never repay you for no matter how hard I try, and you bend over backwards for me.
As I enter my first year of college, I'm scared and nervous but excited for a number of reasons. I'm living on my own practically; I have to learn to make decisions by myself. I don't have you two nagging me to clean my room and do the dishes, and I don't get to wake up to you two every morning. You won't be there when I ace some college tests, I can't introduce you to new friends just yet, and I'll have to FaceTime you to tell you big news.
My whole life you've been there to push me to do better. You get on me about my grades, and you help me with any work I need to do. You drove me everywhere, came out to pick me up at midnight, and supported me through all my adventures. You're my biggest supporters and I know you'll be there every step of the way in college. But just know it won't be easy for me.
I'm happy that I have a good relationship with the both of you and I can be honest with you about where I am and who I'm with, knowing you trust me. Having a great relationship with my parents ensures me that I'll be okay in college because I'll always have them to support me. I know I'll want to come home every few weekends and I'm sure you guys are going to love it. You've always told me that if I want something in life, I have to go get it.
Nothing worth having is going to come easy and if I set my mind to something I can achieve it. If I didn't have parents like you I'm not sure how I would survive.
You'll worry like crazy about things like if I'm adjusting well, making new friends, taking care of my well being, and being safe at college parties. Mom, you'll probably worry about how clean my dorm is and if I shrunk any clothes yet. Dad, you'll probably worry about boys who have come near me and who I'm hanging out with, but you both have taught me so well in life. You've taught me how to be smart in social situations and you've taught me how to protect myself.
To my parents before I leave for college: I love you. I don't tell you every day, but I really do love you and appreciate what you do for me more than anything else in the world. I hope adjusting to not having me around all the time is easy but you still miss me as much as I miss you.
As scary as this time is, it's going to be (hopefully) the best thing that happens to me. I know I'll never be able to repay you guys for everything you've done for me, but these next four years are my time of finding out what I want to do in life and what is going to help me make that happen.
"Family over everything no matter what and till the end."