It's not what we have in life, but who we have in our life that matters.

When making the transformation from high school to college, one of the biggest worries we have is whether or not you will stay close with your friends from high school or if you will be able to make new friends. This was a major worry for me because most of my friends were going to the same college while I was not.

I have been friends with the majority of the same group of people since kindergarten. They are family to me. They’ve been there for basically every major life event I have been through for as long as I can remember. It's impossible for me to imagine a life where I never met them. Absolutely nothing in my life would be the same without them. They have helped shape me into the person I am today. I wouldn’t want it to have been any other way.

Luckily I have been able to stay in touch with them as we are finishing up our senior year of college. I am blessed to say that I believe our friendships have only grown with our time spent apart. We make time for each other during the school year by visiting our friends schools and seeing each other at home over holiday breaks. When we see each other after a long time apart, we are able to pick up right where we left off. There is something very special to be said about friendships like that. With us, the conversations come easy and the laughter often.

Each and every one of my friends from home has a special place in my heart. They would stick up for me, even if I were wrong, just to have my back. They know exactly how to make me smile when I am sad, and they never let me be goofy alone. My friends are the weirdest bunch of people I know, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I consider myself one of the luckiest people because not only are my friends from home great, but so are the friends I have made at school. It’s often harder to create a friendship on a deeper level when you only have a couple years to develop that friendship. However,  I can say with confidence that I will consider a lot of my friends from college to be lifelong friends.

Along with some of the best memories I will have, I have encountered some of my hardest moments of my life at school. I wouldn’t have been able to get through it all without the love and support of the friends I made at school. They have mastered the art of putting a giant smile on my face from ear to ear after only knowing me for a relatively short time. They listen to me when I need to rant about the stress of school or boys but also help me celebrate the exciting times in my life. They know my family like they’ve known me for years and can tell you all about my past because they’ve listened to my stories usually more than one time (and actually payed attention, no matter how boring).

As I am beginning the end of my college career, I begin to appreciate their friendships more and more. Though I’ve only been with them for four short and fast years, they have taken on a huge role in my life. I will forever miss these moments that will soon turn to memories but with the remainder of my time here, I will do my best to make the most out of the time we have left. In the words of Winnie the Pooh, “How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard." Even though we will not be saying goodbye forever, it will never be exactly the same as it was when we all lived within a square mile of each other. I'm excited knowing that as the future approaches, there is different adventures awaiting us. I hope my friends, both from home and school,  know how much they have changed my life for the better. I can only hope they can say the same for me.