The Importance of Female Friends (+ road trip!)

From left to right: Me, Emma, Alysse, Betsy, and Ari

     With a lot of young women, it is tempting to dismiss being friends with other women. "Oh, I just don't get along with other girls," they'll say. I understand this tendency, being largely more comfortable with guys as well as exhibiting several personality traits that are traditionally seen as "masculine". However, I'm here to say that this sentiment is a mistake. The beautiful young women that you see in the picture above are my best friends. 

     The four of us on the right recently took a short trip to see my roommate from the last two years and one of my dearest friends, Ari. No topic is off limits with these girls, which made the sleepover that we had at Alysse's house the night before the drive to North Carolina that much more fun. Our personalities perfectly weave together to form a bond that is unshakeable and uplifting. Even if all of us could easily point out the flaws of the others, it is only because we know each other so well. Those flaws are what enable us to complete each other instead of tear each other down. And that's a beautiful thing.

     I'm the baby of the group by a few months and I love saying things to make everyone laugh. Alysse, the friend I've had the longest (8 years!), is the oldest and is almost a full year older than me. She's the mom of the group in so many ways, including her mad baking skills. Emma is the eternal sweetheart and although I've known her the shortest time, it feels like we've been friends for years. The sharp-witted and adorable Betsy always has us laughing with her perfect commentary and questions. Ari and I have known each other distantly for quite some time, but it wasn't until we decided to share a room at Maryville College that we really got to know each other. I'll never forget the nights we stayed up talking until 3 AM even if we had early classes the next day. 

      Each of these women deserve an entire blog post dedicated to how wonderful they are, but I hope that I've given you an idea of how much they mean to me. Being with them makes me feel giddy, unstoppable, fully supported and loved, and perfectly content. There really is something irreplaceable about being able to go from talking about nail polish to bodily functions in two seconds flat; that's something I couldn't do with my male friends. 

    Hopefully you can see the happy, silly, wonderful vibe of the day that we had in Asheville and Brevard. We are commemorating the trip with something extremely special before school starts and I am so excited to share the news with everyone when it happens.