When your little sister goes to college, there is definitely lots to think about. Whose clothes will I borrow now? Did she have to take the TV? What will my room look like without somebody else's stuff sharing the space? What will I do without her here to share this space...

A little sister is like the best friend you never asked for but always had. She's the one you traded crayons with, but also specifically corrected on how to color the flowers properly. A little sister is the co-architect of every fairy house, the thief of all the blankets at night. She is the ballerina cat to your princess puppy, and the best fort neighbor you could have ever asked for.

My little sister has gone to college. For the first time in our lives, I don't get to show her how to do it. She will walk to class without me holding her hand and she will turn out the lights for herself before she goes to bed. The process of this first week has been so very strange: having to notice all the little things that are different now since she's been gone. Maybe even more so, having to realize that this is only one of the first steps. My little sister has gone to college, and I can no longer pretend that she is not growing up. Before I know it, she will be getting married and buying a home instead of sheets for her dorm. She will be getting career opportunities and becoming a mommy. My little sister will be a grown up.

When your little sister goes to college, there are definitely many things that you will never get back. Besides that one top "you gave to her" of course. I will never again come upstairs to find her sleeping with My Best Friend's Wedding still on and turn off the TV for her. I will (hopefully) never again fight over silly things like whether or not she put my pants in the laundry when I need to leave for work soon. But thank god, among all the changes that we now must face and the ones that are yet to come, there is nothing in this whole world that can change one thing: I am her big sister.

There will never be a day, no matter how much time or distance could come between the day she was born until the day we must wait to see each other in heaven again, that I will not be here for her. No matter how much she learns out there in the world, my little sister will always be able to know the one fact that she's never known a day without: I am her big sister, and I am the luckiest girl in the world.

So when your little sister goes to college, remember that it's ok to cry, remember that she will still be just a phone call away next time you need to hear her voice, and remember that she is still, and always will be, your little sister.