I grew up around a group of people very similar to myself for the majority of my life. We grew up in the same town, we went to the same school, we knew each others' past so it was common to experience similar things. It's bound to happen, coming from a smaller town, there isn't a whole lot to do so you develop your likes and interests based on those people around you. I was surrounded by people who wanted the same things as I did: go to college after high school, experience a new world, and meet a different group of people.

I'm sure just by reading the title you have a specific group of people that comes to mind. Coming to college, we all feel pretty terrified living in an entirely new atmosphere where no one knows who you are. Sometimes it's a blessing, other times it's a curse. For many students, they were going from being the big fish in their little pond to a tiny fish in an entire ocean. I didn't want to leave my friends from back home because they shared a lot of the same characteristics as I did, and we all knew each other so well. I wasn't ready to leave such a familiar place, and it was even more stressful knowing I had to find a group of people that made me just as happy as the one I had back home. It took a few months, but overtime I started to feel comfortable just because of the people I was surrounding myself with. I felt that I knew these girls a lot longer than a year; they were already my best friends. These girls have taught me that strong friendships can be formed quicker than we realize, and they can last a lifetime.

I've also come to notice that college is a time to start over. No one knows who you dated in high school, the mistakes you've made or the things you've regretted. It is an entire new situation that takes a while to get used to. The friendships in college are so valuable because they're something you've never gone through before. These individuals grow with you and want the best for you. We are living and breathing together, and the friends I have worked with as a team I am more than thankful for.

The friends I have in college seemed to form so fast because I was constantly surrounded by them (I say that in the nicest way possible). They are there when you wake up and when you go to sleep. Rather than them knowing who you were as a high school student, they get to know the person you have become. I instantly realized that my friends in college were all so different from one another. Coming from different states, we each contributed something unique, which continually kept us on our feet.

My college friends have also shown me that friendships can be formed no matter where we come from or who we are as a person. We've gone 18 years without knowing who we were, but the time we spent in college makes it feel as if we've been friends since day one. We can’t go a day without talking to each other, let alone an hour.

With that said, here is to another year in college. Another year packed with stories about our weekends, the group message blowing up with plans or crying on each others shoulders about a stupid boy. The people that I have had the privilege getting to call my best friends are the people I hope to always have by my side. It is all about surrounding yourself with people who push you to be a better person. It is about who is willing to drop everything to be there for you. They take you on your bad days, and you're there for them on theirs. The distance has shown me how meaningful we are to one another. I love each and every one of you. You constantly make me count down the days until we're all together again. You're the friends I never knew I needed.