I hope that everyone is as lucky as I am when it comes to having a best friend. For me that girl is Kendra. I met her when I moved after Elementary School. The way we became friends is not your normal story.
Before I was bullied, I still had a pretty decent amount of confidence. I barely knew this girl, but I knew I wanted her to be my friend. So naturally, I randomly asked her if she wanted to come on a family vacation to Rhode Island with me. She said, “Uh, sure why not”. That vacation was the start of a life long friendship.
During our Rhode Island trip, we had some interesting things happen to us. One, my parents got us our very own hotel room! We were only thirteenish, but we were thrilled. My parents even went out one day. We snuck out with our boombox to the square down the road. We were playing Sum 41 thinking we were the coolest chicks and talking to boys as if we were sixteen.
The next day we went to the beach and we noticed there was red seaweed everywhere. My parents said, “Oh, its nothing you can still go in.” So, of course, we went in. Only to find the worst thing ever when we came out. We had baby shrimp in our bathing suits! And I mean TONS of baby shrimp. We freaked out. We begged my dad to take us back to the hotel, but he was stubborn and already set up all our stuff and was not going to leave. So my mom had to drive us to the hotel so we could finally stop feeling violated by baby shrimp.
For many reasons, Kendra ended up becoming part of our family. She was invited to numerous vacations. One time we were spending time in Florida with my parents and grandparents on my dad’s side. When we first got down there, I tried to introduce Kendra to my Grandma.
“Grandma this is my best friend Kendra.”
“Who?? Tendra?”
“No Grandma KENDRA!”
“What? HENDRA?”
“No!!!! Kendra with a K!”
Of course it didn’t stick, Grandma called her all different names throughout the trip.
We went boogie boarding and got so burnt we looked like lobsters. Kendra and I like to say that was also the time we indoctrinated her into Judaism. While we were there, it was Passover. A traditional seder can be awfully long, but luckily we did the shorter version. We were two burnt lobsters wearing yarmulkes (which technically only the men wear, but we loved it).
Kendra and I had fun with everything we did. We had sleepovers, where (and she’ll vouch for this) I’d get into giggle mode instead of falling asleep and start asking her dumb questions. I would end up laughing so hard because she was trying to fall asleep, and I couldn’t stop. To this day if we have a sleepover, I fall right back into the same old pattern of asking her silly questions and hysterically laughing.
She not only became my best friend,
I am beyond lucky to have met her, she’s still my best friend and the only person who knows everything about me. You’ll hear a lot more about her, and us, and all we’ve been through. Just wanted to share an introduction of my very best friend. I don’t know what I would have done without her. She has been there for everything and I am beyond grateful for her. I hope that everyone is lucky enough to have a lifetime friendship
I could write pages about Kendra. She’s the real deal. This post is just a short and sweet intro to the person that has not only been my best friend but my sister. She is one of the few people I would do anything for. Kendra, without you facing life would have been so much harder.
“A good friend is like a four-leaf clover; Hard to find and lucky to have.” -Irish Proverb
Wearing yarmulkes while reading at the seder.