An Ode to my Australian Mate

This morning, I was hoping to sleep in until around 11, as Friday is my only day when I have absolutely nothing to do. However, at around 8:15, my phone started ringing. I was mildly annoyed until I answered and heard the voice of one of my best friends, Sarah from Australia! Obviously, she can’t call me often, and the time difference makes it mildly tricky. Despite early morning Amanda being no match for one-in-the-morning Sarah, we had a wonderful conversation about the horror of Nights in Rodanthe and my everyday blogging. Once we hung out up, I realized I should start explaining my friendship with Sarah here, as I’ll be talking about her more and more as my crazy trip to Australia is coming up in about a month! (Commence freak out!)

I first met Sarah in the Summer of 2006 my first summer working at camp. (You can read my ridiculously long ode to camp here.) She was the drama instructor, which was the job I had originally applied for, so I thought we’d get along pretty well, but then, as camp went on, we never really talked. We were always in different villages, and as Sarah had been at camp before, she had friends…wait…no…she was friends with EVERYONE. Seriously, this girl owned camp after one year. Everyone knew her and loved her. I had just gotten there, and I could already see that. She was this amazing presence of positivity and fun. Even though we didn’t really talk, I knew we could be great friends, and I was sad I never got to be a part of her inner circle of pals that first summer. 

My next summer at camp, I was the drama instructor and for some reason, had to get to camp early  to plan for my activity. The only people at camp were specialists and international staff, which included Sarah, who was working as a general counselor for the first time. For some reason, despite our lack of interaction the year before, we gravitated towards each other in the first two days we were there. Maybe I asked her for some drama advice or we both discovered our love for guitar hero, but however it started, by the end of those two days, we were mildly inseparable. We just clicked in a way I don’t think I ever have with anyone else. I couldn’t believe we’d made it through an entire summer without really talking, because I felt like I knew this girl for years. By the time our mutual (awesome) friend, Sharon (who I’ll have to dedicate a separate post to…) got back to camp, our group instantly solidified, and I began one of the best summers of my life. 

There are way too many memories from that summer to recount. Making “Hazzah” t-shirts at my house over intercession. Hanging out by the fire in Noar Village each night. Running to Wendy’s on night’s out. Running to each other across the village after a day off. Laying on the Ohalim Rec together thinking about the craziness of camp and our friendship. Saying good-bye to each other in Times Square and trying not to cry as I descended into the subway. Sarah made me laugh, made me feel welcomed, and yes, made me develop a thick skin by constantly making fun of me with Sharon. 

When Sharon and I started discussing going to Australia to visit Sarah, it seemed like one of those amazing things that would never actually happen, but then something weird happened. All our parents said yes. All the dates lined up, and we booked some plane tickets. And now it’s only a month away. After showing Sarah around my country, she gets to show me and Sharon around hers. It’s hard to believe that I only really knew Sarah for 8 weeks and that I haven’t seen her in over a year, because I feel closer to friends who live down the street from me. Whenever she emails me or calls me, it makes my day. Whenever she tells me about her accomplishments at work, I feel so proud. She’s halfway around the world, but she’s one of my closest friends, and I cannot WAIT to walk out of that airport terminal to see her smiling face waiting for me and Sharon.