Who are the best kind of people? I just realised yesterday. More like I even found out that I too have been the best version of myself once or twice, and I was proud of it. But more than that, I was proud of the kind of friends I have made over the time. Yesterday, the 26th of March, it was my birthday. Not only did I turn 18, but I received the best gift I could have asked for. I got into a college that goes beyond the category of being a super-dream. I was jubilant to find out that my parents’ efforts and my hard work had paid off, but more than that, at the end of the day, I realised what kind of amazing friends I have.

Yes, I have the kind of friends who don’t let my day become dull by thinking about their losses, but the kind who get more excited than me at something that I have achieved. They shake my hand for my birthday, but they hug me and dance with me for getting into a college. At a point of time, I even felt that someone might have been more deserving than me to get there, but when that friend of mine squealed with delight on the phone, “Congratulations! Why didn’t you call me at 4 in the morning?!” I realised that he was more happy for me than he was upset for himself.

I have friends who bang at my parents’ door at 4 in the morning to tell them about my achievements. I have the kind of friends who start making plans about how we will be roomies after a few months, and how I gave myself the best kind of gift possible.

Throughout my 18 years, there have been some days when I felt glum about not having many friends, but now that I have seen their huge hearts, I cannot thank god enough to have those beautiful selective people in my life. People say that you see the reality of a person in the worst of times, but yesterday, I saw the best versions of the people around me. I was happy, but they were in euphoria. I was joyful, but they were exhilarated. I had tears of joy, but they made me realise that all of it was worth it, and I was starting a new chapter of my life, where all of us would be in different parts of the world, and yet, united by our hearts.

There hasn’t been a day in my life when I felt as fortunate as I did yesterday, neither because I turned 18 and nor because I got into UC Berkeley, but because I realised how much the people around me adore me. I realised the pure hearts that they have, and that no matter how angry or upset I might get with them, they will always be here for me. They are the people who have shaped my personality and who I am today, and it is because of them that I am me. I hope I meet many more people like these and I can cherish all of them the way they deserve.

~ Muskaan Darshan