Since the first grade when I stole your art smock, we became instant sisters. And regardless of how high school took us down different paths and we both went our own ways, I know you will always be my best friend and hopefully I’ll always be yours.

Where do I start?

That one best friend someone has while growing up is the most important friend anyone can ever have. You’ve seen me in all of my awkward phases, and loved me through them. You supported (and even joined) my "Hannah Montana" obsession. We both had countless amounts of inside jokes that made no sense looking back on them. We would spend hours attempting to make music videos only for our parents to tell us we weren’t allowed to post them on YouTube (still mad about that). We were friends through middle parting our hair in elementary school and then getting the infamous side-bangs in middle school. My favorite memory has to be the first time you ever came over my house and my mom made spaghetti. And the first thing you did is dive your face straight into your dish and shoot your head back up, covered in marinara sauce, laughing hysterically.

The memories are endless. Anytime we were together, we ended up getting in some type of trouble. In third grade homeroom our seats would always get separated, but that didn’t stop us from passing notes. How can we forget when our teacher called my parents and said I refused to laugh or smile on the days you didn’t come into class? I’m still not sure how we didn’t kill each other after working for weeks on the fifth grade science fair project. Or why you still talked to me when I got sun poisoning all over my face and could only half smile in pictures. Speaking of pictures -- we can’t forget the middle school photo shoots, stealing our parents' Canon cameras and pretending we modeled. No regrets though, and I would probably do it all over again tomorrow if I had the choice.

Regardless, the main point of this letter is to remind you that I will always be your best friend, whether we talk once a week or once a month. And as much as I would love to be those inseparable ten-year-olds stealing our moms' flip phones to text boys, I know that memory is far in the past. Even though most of our best memories are from our childhood, that doesn’t make them any less special. It’s crazy to think those crazy first graders are now finished with their first year of college, and I would not want to waste another day without telling you how important you are to me.

It was amazing being your best friend, and even more amazing watching you grow into the incredible person you are today. We both saw one another through the good and the bad, and stuck by each other through both. Not one day passes where I don’t find myself thinking of something hilarious you did that still makes me laugh ten years later. Childhood best friends are forever friends. So take care, and I’m sure I’ll see you soon.

Love always,

Your forever friend