Thankful for My Best Friend
You are the Wind Beneath My Wings
Swati likes to say that we’ve been best friends since we were seven. But that’s not exactly true. I met Swati in second grade, but at the time, we both had other best friends.
She wanted to be a lawyer. I wanted to be a writer, a teacher, and a flight attendant that year that I met Swati.
In fourth grade, we auditioned for our school’s choir. Swati volunteered to go first and sang in front of everyone. She had a sweet voice and I still remember how confident she was singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star on the stage with piano accompaniment. When she was done, she looked at me but a boy stepped in to audition next. At that point in my life, I dreamed of being a singer but I didn’t know if I could sing for anyone other than my closest friends. I waited until I was the very last student in the room.
We both made the choir but I was disappointed to be an alto. I had to sing in the back with the few boys in the choir while Swati got to be front and center as a soprano. Always positive, it was Swati who pointed out that I got to practice with all of the cute boys.
She was there through my dark times. Like when I wanted to hurt the boy that broke my heart. She advised me to not to be negative. Karma would even things out. Keep moving forward. Writing was my therapy and…
