I remember counting down the days until I can finally leave my hometown to start college. It was frustrating seeing the same faces every day and I was dying for a change. What I was most excited about was to meet new people, and make new friends. In high school, I had a few very close friends (who I love very much) but I was still looking forward to expanding my friendship horizon. And I did just that.

College is filled with a ton of new faces and since everyone is in the same boat - knowing almost no one - everyone was friendly and wanted to establish themselves. Like any person you meet, you can easily determine who is on your same ~wavelength~ and you immediately click. This happened with many of the people that I have met...others, it did not. As my freshman year is coming to a close, I realized that there are people who are not meant to be in your life and you just have to let them go.

A friend should always bring you up. They should always have your back when you need them, and they should never try to intentionally hurt you, or make you feel that you do not belong. Most importantly, a friend should never bring down your self-esteem.

Yes, friends fight and argue. That is totally normal. But when you need them most, they should fight for you, because they love you. This year, I met a so-called "friend" but in reality, she never had anything nice to say. She always felt superior to everyone else in the room, and after awhile, it takes a toll on you. If you share any little detail of information with her, she will always find a way to make sure that she is better than you. At first, you just think, "oh, she probably didn't mean to say that." But as the year went on, the comments did not stop, and grew more and more noticeable. Then, you begin to question yourself on every little detail. Am I really not that smart, or not that pretty?

It is okay to let these so-called "friends" go if they do not make you happy. People that bring you down and make you feel bad about yourself are not people that you should keep around. No one deserves to be put down in any way, and no one should surround themselves with these types of people. College years are supposed to be the best years of your life, and you shouldn't keep that one person who kills your vibe in your life to share these memories with you. Fortunately, I only had one bad experience with fake friends in college so far. With that said, find people that know how to have a good time, that you enjoy being around. I am super thankful for my amazing group of friends that I made here at school and leaving them for the next three months pains me.