News Taffy

All through high school you’ve had the best group of friends anyone could ask for. You spend any time outside of school with them and they’ve basically become a second family. Now you’ve graduated and between orientations and registrations at this school and that, summer is almost over and you’ll soon be moving off to different places and meeting new people. What are you going to do now?

Going into my third year, I’m now realizing just how important those friendships I had, and have lost, really were. As easy as it seems what with all the social networking available, keeping in touch with those you’ve spent the better part of the past 18+ years with is a lot more difficult than you may realize once you get here. Pictures get pushed to the back of the desk, friendship bracelets are put away in a drawer and texts with all your fun inside jokes become less and less frequent. People really do change and they really do grow apart, but if you’re lucky, some of these people won’t be gone for good.

I’m lucky to have a few very close friends that I’ve had since my early days of elementary school that I see whenever I get the chance and whenever we see each other, it’s like nothing has changed. They’ve been there with me through the worst times and the best times and I can’t thank them enough.

Whether we’re making fancy cupcakes at midnight, taking silly webcam photos or sitting at a coffee shop contemplating how bad the mint chocolate Italian soda is (Really, it is terrible, but it made for some very funny faces both from us and the people around wondering if there was something wrong with us.) we’re the same old “us” we’ve always been.

Now, of course there is always room for new friends. You will be in college for quite some time so, you might as well get to know some people or else it’s going to be a very lonely journey. I’ve made quite a few friends since being at stAte and I know they’ll be around for a long time. The best way to get out and meet people is through some sort of activity, whether it’s a club, a class or a team, meet people. One thing I wish that I could change was being so shy my freshman year. If I had taken the time to get to know more people in the classes I was in, I wouldn’t feel like a freshman every year that I go back, but those are funny stories for a different time. Break any shell that you may have early and keep an open mind. You never know who could be your next friend when you get to college.

So why am I so insistent on friendship, you ask?

Well, I’ve spent the better part of this week on the phone with two very interesting gentlemen about their long time friendships with the one and only Man in Black. Luckily, with this whole “journalism” thing, you get to meet the coolest people, but that’s beside the point. In talking with them about their times with the star before he was a star, it has really made me so happy that I too have a few great friends that I’ve held onto since childhood. It’s comforting to learn that even those of us who make the big time keep close ties with those they’ve known forever.

All in all, I’m sure this sounds very cheesy, but at 688 words, obviously this has to be of some importance. Whether you’re a few years into school and realize your best friend is just another status you scroll by on your news feed or something happened along the way and feelings were hurt, reach back out to them. The most valuable thing you can have as a college kid with empty pockets and big dreams is a good support team backing you up. To all of mine, I’d just like to say thanks for being the best I’ve got!

See ya around campus!
- Beth