I have a love-hate relationship with friendship. It has taught me that you don’t have to do things

by yourself. It’s ok to have people by your side. To have someone stay with you at your lowest

and celebrate your achievements. To have late-night conversations, pulling all-nighters with

laughter and secrets never to be revealed, knowing full well you will not survive the next day. It

has shown me the good in people and the bad at times. Friendship has taught me not to grow

envious when a friend does not invite me to all their elaborate parties, but to feel humiliated if

they choose to find me unworthy to confide in. It has shown me how we can choose our family

not by blood but by heart.

 

But like a double-edged sword, friendship can hurt just as much as it can heal. For when you go

from seeing each other in class every day to only being able to see each other’s faces through a

screen at scheduled times, it may be the most painful thing you can experience. For every last we

had, we commemorated it with tears. The last round we will perform in, the last dinner we will

have, the last time I’ll hang out at your place with your adorable sister. And the last time I can

say that. It has been painful but also a memorable adventure.

 

Now that you have flown above oceans and lands, while I am still stuck here. I miss you a little

more every time I listen to our favorite songs. I miss you a little more every time I can’t solve a

physics problem and need your help. I miss you a little more every time I go to a speech and

debate tournament. Yet as much as it has hurt me, I will not trade our friendship for even the

richest of luxuries in the world. And even though you may be 5000 miles away, the late night

calls for me and the early afternoon calls for you, the photographs we put on our walls and stuck on our laptop cases, the friendship bracelets we made that I wear everyday are a clear reminder that even distance cannot keep us apart. So, thank you, friendship, for making my life so much more magical.