They say home is where the heart is, and in a matter of months, mine will be scattered.

Pieces of mine will be back home in Grand Rapids, up in Marquette, down in Florida. I will be in Pennsylvania.

This column is for the three people who improved my life in the last year, and are some of the people I will miss the most.

Riley,

You have been waiting for this one. Months ago I was trying to think of a column topic and you told me to write about you. I didn’t, I wrote about how I can’t write. However, I did tell you this was coming, so here you go.

You have been one of the few people who have stood by me no matter what. You have stood up for me and you have made me laugh so many times in the last year.

You are incredible. You are so funny. You are one of the kindest people I know. I know you’re going to thrive at Northern, and I’m so insanely proud of you. I’m going to miss you so much, but I’m so glad we became friends again.

Our film from first semester is one of my favorite memories. It was a disaster of a film, but we faked it until we got the A. You left me to do the presentation part alone because you got your wisdom teeth out or something, but we killed it so it’s okay.

I can’t wait to hang out when we are both home from breaks. I’ll miss you and the adventures we have, even if those adventures are just us sitting in the hallway outside of Carhart or making fun of Noah.

Noah,

Disregard the “making fun of you” comment from before because we would never.

I am so insanely proud of you. You are amazing. I’m so proud of you for getting through boot camp, and I’m so proud that you made it through without changing much. I will never forget the first day after you graduated from Paris Island. You texted me and, without hesitation, started making fun of me. For most people, if one of the first messages they got from someone in months included being made fun of, they would feel differently than I do. For me, it was reassurance that I still had one of my best friends and that he hadn’t changed a bit.

In the last year or so a lot has happened. We have become closer friends than we ever were, and I couldn’t be happier.

As much as I make fun of you, it’s because you’re like an older brother to me. I tease you, and I call you names, and it’s because you mean the world to me.

You are amazing, and I’m so glad we got reconnected in World History. I’m so glad Carhart wouldn’t stop putting us all together in seating charts. I’m so glad I have you to make fun of me when my ego starts to get too high.

You’re my favorite marine.

Kyle,

Other than my family, you are probably the person I will miss the most. I will miss you at work, and I will miss coming to your house when you don’t feel well with red bull or candy. I will miss hanging out with you on days we don’t have work. I will miss coming in on my day off to say ‘hi’.

Thank you for everything, for the last seven months, and for the months before that. The distance will be a lot, but you are amazing and we got this.

I know I get sad when I don’t get to see you all the time, but I will get over it and I will figure it out. The distance will strengthen us, and I can’t wait to see that.

You never fail to make me smile, and I hope I do the same for you. I can’t wait to see how you grow in the time we don’t get to see each other a lot. I can’t wait to come home and visit you and the others.

I just can’t wait.

To the three of you,

I love you all in different ways. You three mean the world to me, and I can’t wait to see how our relationships grow. Our adventures are the highlights of my life, and the memories we have made are my favorites. Those things will be the things I hold on to when I’m far away, and you three are scattered across the country. Those things are the ones I will hold on to when I feel like I can’t be that far away anymore.

Keep being amazing. I’ll see you all whenever I can.