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The frames were missing, but at least you didn’t feel left out anymore. I can still vividly see you sat in the classroom, at six years old, wearing your dad’s glasses to fit in with the rest of us with poorer eyesight. Do you remember all the dances that we made up and performed for anyone that was willing to watch? Do you remember our first boyfriend in primary school? We shared him, but he dumped me because you managed to get him the most football stickers. Do you remember a time when all it took to make a relationship last was football stickers!
Do you remember the water park in Majorca when we went on holiday with your mum and dad, do you remember trying to stay awake for a midnight feast – and failing? What about our first holiday alone? We went to Miami and slept more than we partied and, collectively, put on about five stone from eating way too much. Or the time that I held your hair back in Ibiza after a very long and very alcohol induced night out? Or the endless hours that you listened to me repeat myself and sob down the phone when I had my first experience of heartbreak. Do you remember the woman that snored so loud in our room in New Zealand; we were so tired but laughed it off? I still have that recording.
Being your best friend for over 20 years is one of my favourite stories. It’s one of my favourite stories because we really have grown up together, literally and figuratively. It’s one of my favourite stories because it holds so many memorable moments, a few darker times, but so many happy times. It’s a story that stands the test of time and of life with all its roller coaster of alliances: bad boyfriends, hairstyles and jobs. It’s my favourite story because it’s one of the truest ones I’ve found.
Today you find out if you’re carrying a little baby boy or girl and I could not be more elated, excited and happy for you and your wonderful fiancé. I’m sat here today reflecting on some of our past memories and getting lost in all of the many things I truly love about you. One of them being the lengths that you go to for someone you love and how you will make sure they are ok. You have never let me down, not once, in over 20 years. And thinking about it now, I probably took that rareity for granted.
You are kind, compassionate and non-judgmental. You are hilariously funny and the best listener a friend could ask for, you are giving and loyal. You are understanding and accepting. You are a hundred great qualities in one and that is exactly why you are going to be such an incredible mum.
Apart from good health and a lifetime of happiness, the only other thing I would want for your baby is to find someone who can give them a friendship just like the one you give me.
By Tasha Artwell
