To the short one: thank you for always having a fun, new story to tell me. Thank you for the laughs and giggles. No matter if it was a practice that was enjoyable or hardly bearable, there was not one time you did not make the situation brighter with an intriguing story. Thank you for the stories about some of your adventures; telling me where I should visit to or where I should go out to eat with friends. Thank you for finding out the hard way that you have to be 18 years old to buy cough syrup on your own; now I won’t make that mistake as well. I was fortunate enough to have someone as short as I am to motivate me and prove to me that even the tall girls we play against cannot stop us.

To the goldendoodle: I still love reminiscing on the moment in practice when coach said out of all the dog breeds in the world, you would be a golden doodle. It was a very odd, and out-of-the-blue statement, but we all laughed anyway. Thank you for being our captain this year and setting such an incredible example of leadership. Thank you for always saying goofy things that the whole team could laugh at. I think sharing laughter has made our best moments. Your hard work and dedication will be something that I will never forget. Thank you for all your styling tips and informing me about the store Charming Charlie’s. It soothes both of our OCD by being color coordinated.  

To the squeaky one: thank you for becoming a big sister to me. Thank you for the endless chats about cliche teenage girl topics. I am so grateful to have someone that I can come to about any random, whacky question I have and have it answered in a matter of seconds. Thank you for being a ‘guide book’ to high school. All the support you have shown me is incredible. When I was injured last spring, you were the first to text me asking if I was okay and when I could play with you again. Thank you for all the countdowns before each game; your shouting giving you the name Squeaky.

To the absent minded one: thank you for being our comic relief on cold, rainy practice days. We make fun of you for being spacey at times, but in all honesty, I think you are probably the smartest of us all. Or maybe not. Thank you for always asking the ‘dumb’ questions about drills at practice that no one else would dare to ask. Thank you for always playing outside mid so I did not have to. You would always thank me for playing defense so that you would not have to; I thought I would return the favor. Thank you for giving me rides when I could not drive. You almost killed a few of us driving to Steak N’ Shake one time, but it’s alright because we made it out alive and with a tale to tell.

Lastly, thank you to every single one of you for making me feel welcome. As a junior playing with all seniors, there is a slight age barrier. That did not stop you all from welcoming me into the tight bond of friendship. Thank you for becoming some of my best friends. I have so many memories to look back and smile. Thank you for the weekend adventures at out-of-town tournaments and college showcases. The best moments on these weekends was always cramming into one hotel room and spilling secrets. I would not want to run the never ending numbers of sprints we did at practice with anyone else. You all got me through the few dreadful practices we would hope to never revisit again. I hope you all move onto great things and I cannot wait to go to all of your graduation parties and take more pictures together (as if we don’t have enough). I have no idea how I am going to play without you all next year. The thought alone brings up sadness from deep within me. Furthermore, I cannot wait for all of our adventures in the future with the time we have left together before we spread through different paths of life.

I cannot thank you enough.

With love,

Kaley