"A good friend knows all your best stories. A best friend has lived them with you."

I don't think this is really the right venue for this, and I doubt any of you will care about this at all, but these are heavy words and I don't want to carry them inside too much longer. The words aren't a burdensome kind of heavy, but they're heavy with emotions - love, pride, loyalty, affection, protectiveness, joy, shared memories.


Whatever.

I want to write about my friend, so I will. If this post even conveys three percent of the incredible person she is, then I'll be satisfied. And I promise, at least some of this post will be funny. So read it.

Tara 

(This is Tara and I at the VIP after-party for the Australian Ballet's premier of Swan Lake. nbd.)

This past summer, I visited Tara and her family in Buffalo, New York for fun. Tara and I went to see the new Batman movie, and when we got out of the theatre, the sun was beginning to set. The weather was beautiful, and Tara looked around, checked her watch, and turned to me. "Come on. Let's go," she said. She turned, and ran to her car. I chased after her, and I hardly buckled my seat belt before she put the pedal to metal. The minivan probably neared 180 mph, or at least that's what it felt like. We drove up, up, up to the top of a hill, and she slammed the car into park once we reached the top. "Come on! Come on!" She hopped out of the car and ran to a grassy area at the end of the parking lot. What the hell is going on? I thought.  When I finally caught up to her, I lost my breath. I got it. I got why she was running, and speeding, and why our minivan doubled as a spaceship for ten minutes. She wanted to beat the sunset. And she did.

At the top of the hill, there was a wooden hanging swing. We sat on the swing, and I'm sure whatever words I have won't accurately describe what we saw. 

The sky was burning pink and orange and soft purple clouds streaked the sky. Way far away, windmills spun on the cliffs overlooking Lake Eerie, or at least that's what Tara told me they were. We played our favorite song on my phone, and watched the sun sink into the lake. A light breeze lifted the hairs on the back of my neck, and with the sun, and the music, and my best friend next to me on this swing, I felt perfect. Like. To quote The Perks of Being a Wallflower, which is one of my favorite books, I felt "infinite."

I would've been okay staying there, in that moment, forever. 

But since that's impossible, I have to be content with just being her best friend in all the places that aren't a hilltop overlooking Lake Eerie. But that's fine with me too. She is so giving and sincere and selfless and we laugh so much and we drink coffee and drink other things and get up early to study together and go visit my grandma and I honestly wouldn't trade any of these memories for anything. But that time on the hill is a pretty good memory, and I that's why I shared it.

And in case this post wasn't annoying enough already, here's some Taylor Swift lyrics that make me think of her:

Will you take a moment, promise me this
That you'll stand by me forever
But if God forbid fate should step in
And force us into a goodbye
If you have children some day
When they point to the pictures
Please tell them my name
Tell them how the crowds went wild
Tell them how I hope they shine

Long live the walls we crashed through
I had the time of my life, with you
Long, long live the walls we crashed through
All the kingdom lights shined just for me and you
I was screaming long live all the magic we made
And bring on all the pretenders
I'm not afraid
Singing, long live all the mountains we moved
I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you
And long, long live that look on your face
And bring on all the pretenders
One day, we will be remembered.