Dear best friend,

As I sit here thinking about how much my life has changed in the past year, I can’t help but realize how big of a part you have played in it all. Six months ago, you awkwardly walked into my life and asked me to go have lunch with you, and I’ve never been the same.

Since that day, you have been the best blessing I could have ever asked for. I know being a part of my crazy life isn’t easy, and sometimes it gets a little too much for even me to handle, but you have stayed with me and have basically held me up through all of the insanity without a single complaint.

Thank you. Thank you for giving me the keys to your house so I can take a nap before work. Thank you for keeping your door open so that I can barge in and rant about the latest drama, and thank you for letting me fall apart in front of you, and never telling a soul. Thank you for making me Aunt “LayLay” to Alex and new baby, and thank you for including me in basically everything you do.

When I got out of high school, all of my friends went their own way and started making lives for themselves, and I felt so lost and out of place, still stuck here in this little town we both call home… so I started praying that God would send me my forever friend, someone who would stick with me through everything and never lay a single piece of judgement on me, and a few months later, you showed up… and our Mexican food and scary movie nights have changed my life.

We have been through a lot together in the last half a year, and I have watched us both become totally different people, in the best ways. I am so thankful that God gave me a friend like you to start this next chapter of my life with, someone I can pray with, and count on to hold me accountable when I screw up (which is pretty often if I’m being totally honest). I never understood just how important having someone like that was until the real world hit me head on with issues I had always said would never be issues for me, became personal heartbreaking lessons.

So again, thank you. Thank you for telling me “That’s a bad idea”. Thank you for prying the bottle out of my hands on my saddest nights, and thank you so much for accepting me and loving me for the person I am, and for the person I’m becoming. I couldn’t think of a better person to call best friend.

Lastly, I just want you to know that I have never been more proud of you. You have gone through so much more than any woman our age should ever have to go through, and you are still standing, stronger than ever. You tell your story with grace, and your heart shines through in everything you do.

You are someone I will always look up to, and the epitome of the phrase “fall down seven times, stand up eight.” You are a fighter, with the most gorgeous heart and sweetest soul. Thanks for being my person, and my favorite DJ.

Thank you for everything.