A best friend is a person you can lean on in good times and in bad. A person who accepts you for all your quirks and still chooses to be seen with you in public. A person who you’ve laughed your hardest with, a person who will be honest and tell you if that shirt you’re about to buy is horrendous, a bond sealed so vacuum tight that it can never be broken….Well I’m here to inform you that this little thing we call life will do it’s very best to test the strength of you and your BFF.

When going off to college, whether you and your bestie are going to the same college or opposite sides of the country you have to make time for each other. Even if it’s just a quick call or text to inform them on the major babe that’s in your bio class, communication is key. Maybe make weekly “phone dates” where every Tuesday night you FaceTime just to keep each other updated on everything that’s happening. If your bestie is down in the dumps or just having one of those weeks, write her a letter with some memories or inside jokes, send her a funny meme, or watch a sappy movie together over FaceTime and cry/gossip like old times. Senior Anna Sawyer says, “I’m writing my best friends letters and already have a Pinterest board of things to send them!”  As cliche as this is going to sound, it’s the little things that matter and even a “have a great day” text can show them how much your friendship truly means.

NEW FRIENDS, the two words that will crush your soul, the thought of your best friend making new friends and forgetting about you is a legitimate fear and with good reason. As hard as it may be to accept the fact that your friends will now be making inside jokes with others may terrify you, but you have to be happy for them. When your bestie is telling you about his/her new friends with sheer excitement don’t put a wall up and change the subject, ask questions and get to know them as best as you can. The more you “get to know” these new friends the easier it will be when your friend is telling you stories or venting about them without having to stop and remind you of who they’re talking about; in return, be sure to tell your BFF all about your new friends as well. Don’t feel guilty about making new friends, think of it more as adding to your friendship roster. You and your bestie can now share the newfound bonds you’ve made with each other and who knows what could come out of it…. Road trip? Making new friends doesn’t mean that your old ones will be lost, it just means that you and your best friend have even more people to invite to girls/boys night out.

As much as I’d like to say that there is a 100 percent guarantee that you and your best friend will be going on coffee dates and sharing clothes forever, I can’t. The friendship is only going to become what you make it, and the more effort and love you feed it the bigger and stronger the bond will grow. You may realize that you don’t mesh as well as you used to and that’s okay, you may have lost a friend but you will never lose all the memories you have obtained throughout the years. Your best friend from high school is a person that helped shape and watch you grow into the person you’re going to become and that alone is something worth holding onto in itself. So give your best friend a hug, tell them you love them, and that you’ll be besties forever if you have anything to do with it.