Friendship. It’s a powerful word. While most people consider friendship to be an act that occurs gradually and over years of memories, shared experiences, and hard work, in college the definition of friendship changes. Not in a negative way, but instead, in my opinion, a refreshingly surprising and positive way.
Over the course of ten months, give or take, you get to see people on a level never truly experienced before. The idea of arriving at school every day with your hair stylishly done, your outfit in perfect coordination with your accessories, and a smile pasted on your face just does not exist within the realm of college life. Yes, most students do arrive to class appearing put together and prepared, but the difference is that you get to see these same people on your floor, in your bathroom, and in your dorm room before and after class. In these moments, they can wear their favorite comfy sweatpants-the ones that make their butt look big but have fleece lining so…, have a face mask on, and even dig into that pint of Ben and Jerry’s phish food without judgment. Here, they don’t have to worry about presenting an image appropriate for the outside world but rather they are comfortable enough to show their true face to those surrounding them.
Though this level of easiness does not arrive right away, the reality of dorm living makes it much quicker. The girls on your floor, in your building, and, especially, your roommate become your second family and your home away from home. Because you can’t confess your secret crush on the hottie in English class to your sister, you turn to the girl in the bed next to yours and before you know it, you are bonding over his dreamy eyes and how cute he looks in his Vineyard Vines pullover. When you need a home-cooked meal, you can’t walk into your kitchen and ask your mom to make her signature lasagna, so instead you gather your hall mates and try your best to make it together. Eventually, chaos ensues because who honestly knows how to use an oven anyways, and Dominos ends up being the course of choice that night. Ironically, you aren’t even upset that you did not make the lasagna, because you bonded with that girl across the hall and plan to get lunch tomorrow.
Before you know it, these girls, the same ones you hardly knew a few months before, have become your closest friends. You have connected on a level that surpasses what you expected. These are the girls that helped you put together the kick-ass outfit for your first date with your now boyfriend; these are the girls that held your hair back as you not-so-gracefully discarded those last five shots that you swore you could handle; these are the girls that helped you prepare for your big history presentation listening to you recite your speech on Henry VI for the hundredth time; these are the girls that were there for everything.
Eventually, after four years together, you will graduate. These girls will spread out all across the country and instead of walking next door to talk, you will have a group message sharing the latest updates on your life whether that be your new job or the fact that you just got engaged. You will talk to each other on the phone for hours at end, and when you do get together in person, it will be like you just saw each other yesterday. College makes these types of friendship possible and that is why college friendships truly are one-of-a-kind.