New school, new year, finally freshman year. August of 2022 I walked into my first English class here at Dowling. I only knew one girl in the grade above and didn’t know anyone from my class. Not everyone was nice, people saved seats for their friends, and said I couldn’t sit there. “Come sit by me,” Juliana said. Since that very moment she has been like my twin sister. 

I never knew I could become friends with someone who was so much like me. In every aspect whether it be hobbies, friend groups, activities, religion, anxiety, politics, we are usually always on the same page. Twin to the point we have the same exact order at each and every restaurant. It all began the first English class of our freshman year. I wanted to make new friends and I just had this gut feeling we would click. I invited her over to my house the next night to go to the football game with me. Ever since that night, the last Friday in August of 2022, Juliana and I became inseparable.

Many friendships come and go, but some become a part of who you are and last forever. Over the past four years, Juju has been by my side through everything. When I think back to freshman and sophomore year, I think about how “bad” we were but also how we were such good kids. Those years were wild, funny, and full of memories I will never forget. So many moments that made high school exciting for me included Juju. We were always together, walking each other to class, going to each other’s family events, going to hangout with friends, running around town all summer, doing everything side by side. People always knew if one of us were there, the other couldn’t be too far behind.

As we got older and are now about to end our senior year of high school, our friendship has grown with us. We grew out of the wild, always looking for an adventure little girls we were and started focusing more on ourselves, our futures, and our few close friends. This is what I admire most about our friendship- not only did we have fun together, we also grew together. No matter what goes on, we will always have our bond. Whether it’s crazy memories from our first couple years of high school or something as simple as opening our gifts up on my bedroom floor each Christmas night, our friendship has always been constant. She has been one of the most important people in my life, and that will never change. 

Now life is starting to take us in different directions. She has a boyfriend, we both have other friends, different work schedules, and we’re both planning on going to different colleges. We are slowly starting to grow apart, and that is so hard to admit, but I know that will never change what we are to each other. No matter how much life changes, Juju and I will always be best friends. Even if time and distance make things different, Juliana will always be the twin sister I got to choose.