Long distance friendship :)

I had a different post that was almost complete and ready to be shared, but today I felt inspired to talk about someone in my life that means the world to me, so I figured the other post could wait until next week.

One thing they forget to mention about graduating and setting out on the path to your future, is that your friends all take new paths too, sometimes leading them in the opposite direction from you.

On the first day of 8th grade, I walked into my class and sat down next to the tall, curly-haired softball player. I had seen her around before, but I knew very little about her, besides her name and the fact that she was an impressive athlete. It didn’t take long for us to realize that we had 5 out of our 6 classes together, and thus, a friendship was born.

Since then, Rachel has been there through it all. She’s remained by my side through all of my phases (and there have been a lot of them) ,met every one of my past boyfriends (and comforted me through the breakups) and celebrated all of my happiest moments.

I’ve learned a lot about her since that first day of 8th grade. She’s a hopeless romantic, and will make you watch all of the cheesy Netflix romantic comedies (not to mention she’s a HUGE bachelor/ bachelorette fan). She’s an avid reader, always geeking out over fictitious men in sappy romance novels. If you don’t see her, she’s probably either at softball practice or studying, always putting her heart and soul into everything she does. However, despite all of these traits and hobbies which Rachel possesses, there’s an abundance more beneath surface level.

My remarkable friend Rachel is compassionate and patient. If you are experiencing a rough patch in your life, she endures it by your side. She is the best listener when you need to rant, always giving advice and never judging you for any reason. She gives the best hugs that make you feel safe and comforted in every situation. But most importantly, she is a loyal friend and will never betray the people she cares about.

Now for the shocking part. I could probably count on two hands the amount of times Rachel and I have hung out alone outside of school in our 5 years of friendship. One might view this as rather strange; best friends that rarely spend time together? I used to feel the same way. However, after this past year which I’ve spent reflecting on my time in high school, I now understand that this is a blessing. Ours is the type of friendship that is built to last through anything. Sophomore year, we had no classes together. At the time, I remember worrying that Rachel would forget our friendship and that we would drift apart. As you can probably tell, we only got closer. Just as I went through many phases in high school, so did our friendship and our roles in each other's lives. Whichever paths we embarked on over the past 5 years, they always ended up crossing and leading us back to each other.

I prefer to say this was just us practicing for the real world, as my goofy, bubbly best friend will be moving to Alabama for college while I stay here in the mitten. Setting out on our own paths, we will soon find ourselves 973 miles apart. I will miss her distinct laugh that fills the room with joy, our late-night study sessions for AP statistics when neither of us had any clue what we were doing, and screaming the words to “Truth Hurts” by Lizzo with the windows down after impulsively buying coloring books from the craft store.

As much as it will hurt come July 5th when my sweet friend leaves to start her new chapter being a D1 softball stud in the south, I know that nothing could ever break the bond which I made with that tall, curly-haired girl who changed my life and showed me true friendship.

I love you Rach. Thank you for all of the memories, the endless laughter, and the unconditional love. Also, thank you for still being my friend after I stole your poptart, even though it was a limited edition one that they stopped carrying at the grocery store.

I hope you enjoyed learning about my incredible friend.

-Ava Jean :)