"And now, Miss Hailey's closest friend, Jade DeVille, would like to say a few words..."
I stood up shakily in a teary haze, trying not to trip over my long black skirt and formal shoes. As I slowly made my way towards the podium in front of the chapel where my best friend's funeral was taking place, I took deep, shuddering breaths trying to regain my composure. I felt light-headed from what felt like days of nothing but tears, choking, gasping, sobbing...
Hailey had been my best friend since first grade. That made it almost a decade of friendship. We'd been like any other pair of best friends, sharing almost everything to the point where we had been virtually inseparable. Our families, as a result, had become closer too, and by middle school we pretty much were family. Hailey was one of those girls who everyone just naturally knew and liked, and she knew it too. I was not one of those people, and without her I basically would have ended up a social loner. She was such a large part of my life that from a certain point on I had begun to take her for granted. Then one day the phone call came; apparently Hailey and her entire family had been in a car accident. My parents and I had rushed to the hospital, and the rest of her family were not severely injured, but she passed away quietly the next day. I simply collapsed. I felt so lost without my best friend, and for once in my life I had no where to go, no one to talk to. I shut myself in my room and cried for days. Whenever I thought I could almost stand up again, something so insignificant would happen and bring back such intense memories that I would dissolve into tears once more. And so it went on until today, the memorial.
Now I stood in front of a chapel full of people, including family, schoolmates, and others. Suddenly I had no idea what to say. I had planned out an entire eulogy the night before, when my tears had almost stopped for once, but now my mind was empty except for the one terrible haunting fact: the most important person in my life was gone, never to return. I fought the wrenching sobs as hard as a could, but a few escaped and echoed around the room. Some in the crowd made a few sympathetic noises; otherwise there was nothing but respectful silence. When I had calmed down a little, I looked up and took another deep breath. I then simply said the first things that came to my mind,
"Hailey was my best friend, and I will never forget her. Neither will any of you who knew her, I believe, and that is what really matters. During her short fourteen years of life, Hailey has befriended so many of us and given us so many precious memories. I know that as long as we remember and love her, she will never truly be gone. Yea, I know everyone has heard that way too many times, and I know that no matter what it will never be the same. She will never be back here, with us, and there's no denying that I will miss her more than anything. However, sometimes life does this to us to teach us something. We now know that life is short, and you never know what might happen tomorrow. Never assume or take anything for granted, and live each day like it is your last. Treasure everything and everyone, because you never know how much longer it or they will be around. I think that I say this for Hailey as much as for me: instead of mourning for our loss today, let us take a moment and truly appreciate what we still have..."
