If there’s anything that I’ve learned in the past year it is the importance of really great Imagefriends. When I first went to college I was horrible at keeping in contact with my friends from high school and following through with new friendships. As my college years continued, I began noticing that friendships continued to blossom best when I took time to let someone know I was thinking about them. Now that I am a senior and will be entering my final semester in college, I am taking the time to recognize the people who have made the most impact in my life. These are the people who I can have meaningful conversations with, that make me smile, and who force me to do new things.

I have a few friends who I’ve had in my life since 6th and 7th grade who I will never lose contact with. That’s 11-12 years of knowing these people! These girls are people whom I’ve had plenty of ups and downs with throughout my middle school and high school years but, in the end we still see each other often. My ladies from those years are the ones who I can go out with and simply sit and talk for hours. I have one friend in particular who has made the largest impact in my life. We are the epitome of soul sisters for sure. When we get together we literally talk about everything that we struggle with. We have conversations about some of the largest life decisions and questions out there. She is the woman who recited this quote to me:

“Great minds talk about ideas
Good minds talk about places
Small minds talk about people.”

It is so true! I leave our meetings feeling fulfilled and inspired every time. She will be my best friend all throughout my life and the only way I will keep her around is by keeping in contact. We’ve made it through different schools for four years, semesters on opposite ends of the country, and months of no communication. Having people like this in our lives once we are in our mid-twenties and out of our university years can make it easier to get through everyday life once we’ve entered the “real world”. Sure, we will meet people in our work places and when frequenting bars and restaurants but, our lasting friends are the sidekicks who make us get out there and meet other people.

There are also people who I’ve met during my college years that have the power to keep me happy and who know the struggles that we face while we’re away from home. I have met many people through classes and extra-curricular activities who have the power to make me an active member in society! These are the people who challenge me on a professional level to push my boundaries and do awesome things. I know that when it comes to my professional career as a dance artist, the friendships that have developed in school will be the ones that get me places in work. Having connections and networking during these years allows us to really make something of ourselves once we are out of school. I know that having constant contact with these people will be extremely important in my life outside of school.

Being social on a regular basis is crucial to having a happy and healthy personality. Happiness is best when it’s shared with other people in your life. Knowing that you have friends who are on the same page as you and who can share in your successes and failures is vital to a healthy lifestyle. Moral of the story: keep in contact with the people that you’ve grown to love over your early twenties and keep those relationships thriving as you begin to get older.