Around Thanksgiving time, we begin to contemplate the things that are important to us and the things that we are thankful for- at least we should. Each year, on Thanksgiving, I think fondly of my family, job, faith, and how fortunate I am to have a roof over my head, fresh food to cook, and of course, my cats. But, this year, I’ve been thinking about friends.
I have had many friends come and go, and some come and stay throughout my 22 years of life; maybe many more than a lot of people have in a whole lifetime. I have been very fortunate that way.
I’ve had best friends for over 10 years who I’ve experienced a falling out with. Friends who’ve been around since I was little that I reunited with. Friends that I’ve just met. And friends who’ve been there through it all- the good times, the terrible times, and the times in between.
Each of my friendships are different, complex, and beautiful in their own way.
My best friend lives in Oregon with her parents and her newborn baby. She has been my best friend since the day we first met in seventh grade health class and when we met, I knew we’d be friends forever. She’s not the kind of friend that you just let go easily. I’ve never had a friend like her.
We’ve had periods of time since the seventh grade where we weren’t able to stay in touch because of unseen circumstances, but I’ve always kept her in my heart, and she’s kept me in hers
I remember when she moved out of state last year. I spent a great deal of time crying, because my best friend- the one that I ran to whenever any life trauma or hard-to-deal-with event came up, she was there and now she wouldn’t be an hour or less drive away anymore.
I haven’t seen her since she moved but we do have plans to see each other hopefully next spring and I’m excited to meet my little nephew.
Another good friend I met in the fourth grade. We got kicked out of class for sneaking ice cream into class in our backpacks and the teacher sent us outside to eat our ice cream before it melted through our bags and onto the carpet. I don’t know how he knew that we had ice cream but perhaps we were talking way too loudly about it and snickering. We continued on to be really good friends in the fourth and fifth grade.
In the seventh grade, we ended up attending different schools but we still texted all the time. We spent hours texting and talking on the phone about our “boy troubles”, which we thought were very significant at the time. During high school, we saw each other once or twice but ultimately lost touch afterwards.
We got in contact with each other again after she found out my best friend had moved away. She was able to relate, because her best friend lived states away too. I think this kind of created some sort of a bond between us.
I love this girl, because she’s always up for adventure and we continue to talk about our “boy troubles”, or rather “husband troubles” now, since we are both married.
We also go to the gym pretty often together and have good conversations while we are working out. We have yet to really push each other though, which we always joke about. We are too nice, so we end up slacking at the gym and telling each other how good of a job the other did and then later when we get home, we tell each other about the unhealthy food or snacks we ate to reward ourselves. It’s hilarious.
A while ago, I actually met a friend on Tik-Tok. I know what you’re probably thinking: stranger danger! It’s good to be wary of strangers but the app isn’t that bad. My new friend recently got married and has two step children who she loves like her own. She’s extremely caring, compassionate, and motherly, and I like that about her.
She does her best to keep everything together and is a support for everyone around her. I also go to the gym with her sometimes and we have good talks. I can’t wait to get to know her more.
Friends come and go but I don’t want to take a single thing about my friendships for granted, so this Thanksgiving, I’m thankful for friends, both past, present, and future.