Once we graduate high school, we tend to get caught up in the idea that we are all going separate ways from our high school friends, our lives will never be the same, we will never be as close as we all were in high school, blah blah blah.

This doesn’t have to be true and this shouldn’t be true.

In light of some recent events that have occurred in my hometown with people who were in my own graduating class, I have had some time to reflect.

No one is “too cool” to stay in touch with their high school friends. Our high school friends are some of our best friends for life. These are the people we grew up with. These are the people who were in our 2nd-grade class, who we played with during recess in elementary school and sat at our lunch table senior year.

Too many times people say “I hate my hometown. I can’t wait to move far away and never come back”. This should not be the attitude. Trust me. Your life could be so much worse than the drama you had with Sarah freshman year.

Life is way too short. Appreciate the people who have been there for you since you can remember, and TELL them you appreciate them.

Be thankful that you had these relationships that have been built over a lifetime. At one point, these were the only friends you had. Yes, now you may have plenty of new college friends and you may love them after only knowing them a few years. This does not mean it is okay to forget about those who have been there since day one.

Keep in touch with your high school friends. Give them updates on your life no matter how far away you guys may be now. Tell your BFF about the guy on your Snapchat story and how you applied to study abroad for the summer. Make time over breaks to spend time with them and reminisce on stupid stories from high school and share new ones even though you might not have had them together.

In the blink of an eye, your life can change forever. Things happen all the time that we don’t plan for. You will regret it if you take for granted your forever friends that can be found in high school. I promise you it is worth it to put in the extra effort not to lose them.

If you haven’t talked to your high school best friend in the past week, give them a call. Tell them about your weekend, ask them how their classes are going. Take 20 minutes out of your day to make time for people that matter while you have the chance to. It will pay off in the long run.

My mom is more than 50 years old and still plans vacations to Florida with her high school girlfriends once a year. If that is not me and my friends in 30 years, I don’t ever want to grow up.