Sometimes you never really realize how much you mean to someone until they tell you. There comes a time when you realize just how thankful you are to have such amazing people in your life, but you never know how to tell them. As I head out into “the real world,” I thought now would be the perfect time to let those people know just how much they truly mean to me.

To my parents,

Thank you for giving me the world. I wouldn’t be where I am today without your constant love and support. Thank you for always being just a phone call away any time of the day to listen to me talk about my day or go through an emotional breakdown. Thank you for providing the words of love and encouragement that I needed to get through the rough patches and assuring me that I was doing the right thing and that everything was going to be okay. Thank you for shaping me into the person I am today, and being my biggest fans. You are always there to make sure that I am chasing my dreams and achieving my goals and I wish there was a way I could repay you for it.

To my friends from my hometown,

Thank you for staying in my life. Once we left high school, I was scared to see what our futures would hold for us, but what that was was each other. Thank you for allowing me to grow and make new friends while you went off and did the same. Although we may not talk every day, it’s always nice to know that we can pick up right where we left off. Thank you for giving me stories and memories to carry me through whenever I get a little homesick. Thank you for teaching me that distance doesn’t matter because no matter how far apart we are, we will always remain friends.

To my college squad,

Thank you for being my home away from home. I couldn’t imagine what the past four years would have been like if I didn’t have you by my side. Thank you for spending long hours studying with me and keeping me on track even when I didn’t feel like doing anything. Thank you for always being my voices of reason and my shoulders to cry on anytime I needed that extra comfort that only a friend could provide. Thank you for the late night talks and the endless laughs whenever I need them, you will never know how much they truly mean to me. Thank you for never judging me no matter what happens. Thank you for the nights we stayed in and watched movies and for the nights we went out on the town. Thank you for just being you. You have become my family and I can’t wait to see what our futures have in store for us.

To my professors and mentors,

Thank you for teaching me everything I know. Thank you for allowing me to bang down your door when I thought I was having some sort of crisis and working with me to figure it out. Thank you for giving me lessons that I am able to apply outside of the classroom because you taught me things that go beyond what the books say. Thank you for the hours that I have spent in your office going over my future plans and making sure that I was taking the right steps to better myself. Most importantly, thank you for never giving up on me. You have showed me that I can do anything.

To the place that I’m leaving behind,

Thank you for the last four years of my life. When I first stepped foot on campus I was nervous and scared of what would be ahead of me, but that quickly changed. I was welcomed with open arms and knew that I was in the right place. Throughout the four years we’ve spent together, you have helped to shape me into the person that I am today. You have been there to see me laugh, cry, learn and grow. You have given me some of the most amazing opportunities and you helped me meet some of the most amazing people. Now, it’s time for us to go our separate ways.

I have never really been good at goodbyes, but this one is particularly hard. For four years I felt comfortable and at home. Now as I head off on another journey and begin a new life, I have to readjust and make myself at home once again. Thank you for being such a huge part of my life. You have given me the strength and the courage that I need to understand what life will be like once I leave the safety of your campus. I know that no matter which direction life takes me, I can always look back at the four years we’ve spent together and I’ll always feel that sense of home. So while this may be goodbye for now, it won’t be goodbye forever because you will always be a part of me, and for that I can never thank you enough.