As kids, all it took to become friends with someone were matching shoes or a favorite song. As kids, friends were a priority, so much so that there are even sayings reminding one to put friends before boyfriends/girlfriends. Now that I am older, I don’t necessarily disagree with those statements. It was always an easy decision to skip family dinners or outings to hangout with friends. Throughout life, there are friends you break up with and friends you lose touch with, but the lucky ones have a best friend that stands the test of time.
Rewind to 2003: my best friend and I met in 7th grade. One of my earliest memories of our friendship is getting in trouble while running an errand for a teacher, because another teacher thought we were skipping class and tried to discipline us. The funny thing is neither of us were troublemakers. As we grew up together, we experienced deep emotions and memories such as falling in love, getting bad grades, disagreements with our parents, and teenage heartbreak.
We are bonded in a way that cannot compare to any adult friendship.
Adult friendships are great, but trying to tell a new friend about the time my best friend and I got lost coming home from West Town Mall and cell phones didn’t have Waze or Apple maps for directions would just be a silly story to tell. (That’s another favorite childhood memory I have.)
Let’s face it; our adult friends will never have the same connection that our childhood friends have.
This is where a hard truth lies. As many friends do, my best friend moved away five years ago and a part of me left that day too. We still talk every single day — really, I am not kidding. Not having someone to run and get Mexican food with anymore is sad. Sure, I have plenty of friends that would go get chips and salsa with me anytime, if their child doesn’t have sports practice or their husband doesn’t work late, that is.
Maintaining friendships once you become an adult is hard.
Even if you have great adult friends, there will always be something special about hanging out in a basement at 2am at 14 years of age giggling about the boy who sits next to you in class. Or driving around with nowhere to go with your windows down while singing the latest hit song with your best friend. Another hard truth is that I both mourn and cherish my childhood friendships. I have the best memories with my friends, but I will always miss memories of days with hardly any responsibilities, making plans for a sleepover or planning what to wear to the mall.
