There are only so many ways you can thank someone, and often times there isn’t nearly enough words to transcribe thankfulness. Yet, there is always an opportunity to try; so, here is my attempt to express the everlasting gratitude I have for my four best friends.

Dear Hannah,

There are boundless things I could thank you for, yet I find myself focusing on one thing. I thank you for teaching me that I am never alone. Through the worst times in my life to the moments I will forever cherish, you have been there. No matter where you are or what you are doing, you are always, always there to make sure I am not alone. When I’m consumed by hurt, you’re there to take it away and promise me I will be okay. When I am embarrassed and coated in red, you are there to distract the attention. When I am full of anger, you are there to bring me back to sanity. When I am full of emotion, you are there to listen to everything I have built up inside of me, behind my indestructible wall of emotion. Even when it comes to just doing crazy things, you are always there by my side to do them with me. You’re there to go on adventures with me, to be dumb with me, to make a fool out of yourself with me, and to be happy with and for me. Wherever I am, I know I will always have you by my side. With you as my best friend, I am never left to darkness by myself, you are always there to make sure I am never alone.

Dear Annabel,

Once again, there is no way to thank you, even with an infinite amount of words; however, I want to thank you for teaching me to be strong. When I am weak and shadowed by my pain, you are there to tell me I am going to be okay. Whenever I am listening to the shadowed wind whisper to me that I won’t get through something, you are there to give me the endless reasons why I will be able to persevere. You have always had this confidence in me that tells me my story is okay. You have always been one of the strongest people I know, and that has the power to be contagious, giving me strength when I need it most. When I am left shattered in pieces, you are there to pick up each piece and build me back together. You give me the strength I need to keep myself together, to become better. Through you, I learned that I can be strong; I learned how to be strong. You always tell me the good that is obscured beneath the direst things, the hardest things. You always know what positivity there is following every negative; you know that no matter how heinous a moment can seem, there is always something magnanimous just waiting to happen, that if you just stay strong, things will always work out for the best. With you as my best friend, I am able to be strong in my weakest times.

Dear Jenny,

There are so many things I want to thank you for. You have been there for fourteen years of my life, so how do I thank you for all of those moments in one paragraph? I can’t put into words how grateful I am for you, but one thing I can specifically thank you for is teaching me how to always find a way to smile. Through years of friendship, there is one thing we have never lacked or lost: laughter. Even when I am in my own somber world, you always know just the right thing to say to bring a smile to my face. Even when I am lost in my maze of emotions, you are there to bring happiness back to me. Thank you for making me smile when I need to most and always reminding me that there is a joy inside sorrow. Whether we are coursing through ridiculous jokes or being reminded of old inside ones, I always find myself smiling with you. It’s always an effortless smile. Even when I am trying my hardest to mask a smile, I never can with you around. You give me happiness when I need it most, and that’s something most people could never do. With you as my best friend, I will always remain smiling. 

Dear Ella,

Last, but not even close to least. I want to thank you for teaching me how to appreciate things. You look at the world through this positive scope. No matter how awful something is, you always find something to appreciate. Your happiness is a contagious air you carry around yourself, and it shows just how beautiful everything can really be. You appreciate even the smallest things around you, the things that most people wouldn’t even notice, and having you by my side made me realize how important it really is to appreciate something. You find the good in almost everything, and you find a way to appreciate everything. Whenever I find myself with a lack of fondness for anything around me, you show me that there is always something to appreciate. You lend me your look at life and prove that there is always something worth being grateful for. You prevent me from being a selfish and greedy person, a person I don’t ever want to become. You continuously show me that there is always something worth acknowledging and being grateful for. With you as my best friend, I remain the person I want to be, appreciating the things around me and blockading my mind from becoming utterly selfish and greedy.

These messages aren’t even covering the tip of the iceberg of my gratitude I feel towards my four best friends, but they are a thanks for some important things I have learned from them that make me who I am. I could never put into words how much my best friends really mean to me, but I can acknowledge that exact fact– the fact that they’re more important to me than an infinite amount of words could describe.