A lot of people say that good friends are hard to find. That feeling loved is a treat you better hold on to. Frequently, these ideas are brought up in conversations about finding a soulmate or maybe an amazing best friend. For me, I found amazing and loving people in the form of an entire family.

I guess it's important to note that at the beginning of this timeline I was lucky enough to develop a friendship with the most incredible friend in the world. My luck didn't stop there, though. My best friend's family took me in like a part-time son. Over the course of a few years I spent a ridiculous amount of days and nights at their house. I even stole granola bars on the regular and at one point drank straight from their milk jug, and they kept making me feel welcome there. I know I'm not alone in referring to a best friend's family as my second family, and I think that all the second families deserve both a shout out and to know just how much they've impacted the lives of me and anyone else who can relate. So, to my second family...

You're seriously awesome.

First and foremost, you need to know that you're honestly just awesome people. Community members love you. You go around being nice and social and caring toward everybody. I'm so lucky that for whatever reason you all chose me as the parasite you didn't want to get rid of. You're all full of love and fun.

Speaking of fun, thanks for so much of it.

I've spent a lot of time at your house doing who knows what with my best friend, but sometimes I did things with two of you or all three of you. Plenty of fall occasions included playing catch with a football in your front yard. And I've watched multiple football games with you guys, despite it sometimes being painful for me to root for your team. I've helped make meals with you, even if that typically means no more than getting plates out or cutting vegetables, just to then eat more than I should have. We've played a crud ton of games together, from card games to board games to marbles and everything in between. And there's no way of forgetting that your house has been the set for a number of homemade movies.

You took me in, and my life is better for it.

The underlying tone behind any amount of fun, productivity, or even things like relaxation has always been love. I went through more than one heartbreak in high school. Looking back I know I was a typical teenage boy through times like those, but none of you were ever condescending. If anything you went above and beyond to make me feel OK and loved. At any given time you probably knew my class schedule and my grades. I played sports year-round, and you were always supportive of me. Heck I ended up playing on at least one sports team a year with my best friend too.

I've learned about central characters in your favorite shows, and I learned some of your favorite movies and foods. For most of the time I've known you I've been able to navigate your house in the pitch black. In fact, I have been known to navigate the house when my best friend hasn't even been there. Like the time he came home to his dad and me watching golf together. Everything about spending time around you guys just became such a natural, integrated part of my life. I felt like I belonged, and that meant more to me than you could know.

I have developed greatly for the better as a person over the last few years. Such a large chunk of that can be accredited to you. I haven't always been selfless and caring. Those are two essential qualities you all possess, and I developed them in large part by proximity to you. I am proud of the person I am today, but know that I couldn't be who I am without you.

I've had some rough patches, and you know that. I have always been able to tell you anything, even in such times. You may not have known, but you were often the only people I felt comfortable telling things to. Your house was and will always be a place of comfort for me. It represents a place where I don't have to worry about who I am or what else is going on in my life. And it goes beyond that. It represents a place where I will forever feel welcome and loved. I could write a book about how much you all mean to me, but to wrap up I'll just say this. You may not have ever known how incredibly important to me all of you are, but you guys can account for a large percentage of my happy memories, my fun times, my life-betterment, and my constant feeling of belonging in the world.

Thank you for being you.

Love,

Your Unofficial Half-Son