Senior Sharon Parmar and her neighbor, FHC alumna Amanda Bartolovic, have been joined to the hip since she can remember. 

Towards the beginning of their friendship, Sharon and Amanda were extremely shy. The two would stay with their brothers, who are also very close, and never said a word to each other. But one day, something changed between the two, and they began talking.

Things moved along rapidly for Sharon and Amanda after they broke the ice. Soon, they found each other hanging out every day, from sunrise to sunset.

“The friendship itself is effortless,” Sharon explained. “Every day is something new. It’s so predictable, but you don’t know what’s going to happen and we’re always making each other laugh.”   

The adventures that Sharon went on with Amanda included swimming in the pool, ding-dong-ditching their neighbors, and bike rides to neighborhoods they’ve never been to. As they got older, they began walking to different places like Walmart, Culvers, Subway, and Wendy’s, since they lived close to them. Throughout the years, Sharon has never found it difficult to be with Amanda.

Looking back to when she was a freshman, Sharon realizes that she has changed tremendously. Even though she has changed, Sharon views it as a good thing, for she is now able to take more risks in her daily life.

“I don’t think you realize how much you change every year until you’re looking back,” Sharon said. “Freshman year, I wasn’t willing to take risks or join clubs or be as outgoing as I am now. Sophomore and junior year [were when] I really came out of my shell started to take more risks. I was like, ‘If this works, it works. If it doesn’t, at least I tried it and I gave it a chance.’”

During these years filled with change, Sharon and Amanda have been able to create an even stronger friendship.

“[We’ve stayed so close because] no one would understand each other as well as we do,” Sharon said. “I feel like we have a very good understanding of each other. I think it’s just one of those friendships where you just know how the other person is doing.”

Sharon feels like she knows her best friend really well. She knows when Amanda doesn’t want to talk about something, when she needs someone there, and when she needs a good laugh.

Along with the change in Sharon’s personality, the two friends have found a way to overcome the obstacle of their age difference.

“[Amanda is a freshman] in college now, so it’s a different dynamic,” Sharon said. “We’ve always been neighbors, and now there’s a little distance between us. It’s nice to see that even though she’s at college, we’re still so close and talk every night. I think that is something that people are usually afraid of—losing that friendship that you think is going to last forever. I know, personally, that we’re always going to be friends no matter what.”

Sharon and Amanda have countless memories together. From sitting and conversing for countless hours in the car, to, in extreme cases, setting the grass on fire.

“We [were] doing fireworks, and there [were] a bunch of houses [across the street that] had already burned down a few years ago,” Sharon recounted. “I was just standing there watching the grass on fire thinking, ‘If this reaches the houses, I’m going to be responsible for five houses burning down.’”

Another time that Sharon and Amanda’s shenanigans caused some trouble was when Sharon had just turned twelve and overestimated her strength.

“[Amanda] was twelve years old, and I had just turned twelve, and I was not a strong person at all,” Sharon said. “And I was like, ‘I’m Superwoman now; I can pick you up.’ So I tried to pick her up on the sidewalk, and I dropped her on her head and ran home. We didn’t talk for a week because I felt so bad, and her mom had to come out on the balcony and find her.”

Through the thick and thin, accidental droppings to firework fun, and from long-distance to right next door, Sharon and Amanda have been and will always be the closest of friends.

“[Amanda] never understands or [can] relate to all of my freakouts or my passions, but she takes the time to actively listen to everything I have to say,” Sharon said. “I value her undying ability to listen to her friends’ banter about things she doesn’t understand, but she still sits there for hours at random times during the night to acknowledge she is there. Sometimes, all you need is someone [there] to listen, and I value her for doing that constantly.”