Before I started college, I treated graduation as an ending. I kind of assumed that after graduation we would all go our separate ways. Yeah, sure, we'd see each other over breaks for the first year, but after that? Well, we'd have our own lives and we wouldn't really want to be together.

That was kind of silly.

Of course, there are times in your life when a group of people fits, and then it does't, and you all move on. The thing is, I don't think that high school is that time. High school is formative, and without those people following you to college, you might start to feel pretty anonymous. I know I would. Especially those first few months when you don't have "college friends," it's definitely a big deal to have those people you know you can count on no matter what.

That being said, once you're established with your college groups, things are definitely a little bit different. You all have your own lives, your own activities and your own friends. You're not together every day any more, and that's a really good thing. You're all really happy in your new place with your new people.

But if you're lucky, like I have been, then you also still have each other. This is important, because when somebody you dated junior year gets engaged, or your high school floods, or even when you see somebody you had never before seen outside the school hallways, you have people who already know and understand those situations. Because yes, the college friend can be broadly sympathetic, but the high school friend knows the background.

Essentially, this is a big thank you letter.

I wrote an Odyssey article over a year ago now about how I was sure we'd all stay friends. I'm not trying to say I told you so, but... I did.

I'm really grateful for all the reunions, the group texts and the people to visit. I'm also so very grateful to be part of a group of people who constantly encourage one another from afar, who stage elaborate surprise mountain trips–just, you know, as an example–and who love so well.

Thanks for being the ones most excited to meet all the people who are such an important part of my life here at university, and for being constantly ready for any new adventure or challenge.

To the high school seniors and college freshmen: acclimating to college is important, make no mistake. You are going to meet amazing people there, and you're going to fall in love with places you never could have imagined feeling like home. But you can't forget the people who made high school feel like home either. Each support system is intensely important, and you won't want to do without either one. Things will change. They're bound to–like I said, you're all meeting new people and experiencing new things. The thing is, if you're lucky, those changes will only strengthen your friendship and give you more to talk about when you are all together.