Scintillating Summer

All throughout our lives, we form many different kinds of relationships with the people we interact with, and whether they’re work relationships, romantic interests, family connections, or friendships, or a mix of those, they all influence how we develop and grow as a person. That being said, there are relationships that are more meaningful or significant than others, people who you care so much about that you’d do anything to help them and that you can’t imagine your life without. To me, Ana Lopez is one of those people.

Ana was introduced into my life this past summer in mid July. I was volunteering at a new summer camp at my parish, and the age group was first to eighth grade, which turned out to be an enormous. It was because of that that I was helping out in the first place, and I knew that my mom was expecting four or five more volunteers to come help out with crowd control as well. On the first day of the camp, I was at the registration table where people were arriving, and this tiny Latino girl wearing athletic clothes with her thick, wavy, black hair tied in a pony tail, walked in with an older woman, looking pretty confused. Thinking that she must have been a seventh or eighth grader and trying to help them out, I asked what grade she was in so that I could direct them to the right table. That, however, only seemed to make her more confused, so my mom came over to help. It turned out that she was actually in high school, and had just mistakenly come to the wrong session; it was nine in the morning and ours only started at seven-thirty that night. My mom, seeing how many kids there were and how little chaperones we had, told the girl that if she wanted to, she could just stay and help out with us until it was actually time for our age group. She was fidgeting and seemed kind of anxious, so I expected her to say no like a lot of teenagers would, but she surprised me by saying yes. I smiled at her and introduced myself, and she told me that her name was Ana. Not wanting to leave her alone to flounder as she tried and figure out everything on her own, I helped her out by explaining who all of the adults were, what exactly we’d be doing throughout the day, and at some points, explaining things that she didn’t quite understand. It turns out that she was visiting from Spain in order to perfect her English before she went to high school in England next year. The more I talked to her, the more I realized that this girl was not at all as shy as I had originally thought. Not only was she insanely smart, speaking Spanish, English, and French fluently, Ana was also a genuinely sweet person. As we spent time together, we realized that while our personalities were different, we had common interests and got along really well. That’s why I was really happy when, even though it was still a little awkward at the end of the day, she said that she’d be coming to help out again tomorrow.

As the week went on and I introduced her to more people, we got to know each other better and became a lot more comfortable with each other. It was then that her true colors started to shine through her smile and her laughter. I don’t know if I’ve ever met anyone as honest and authentic as Ana. Her witty, playful sarcasm began to permeate our conversations, and it was honestly so refreshing to have someone like that in my life. It only took us a couple of days, at most, to become inseparable, and even after that summer camp ended, we kept in touch and hung out at least on a weekly basis. I helped her to adjust to life in America, but she also helped me in so many ways.

Most importantly, though, Ana helped me to realize that not everybody has ulterior motives and is hiding behind a facade, which is something that I didn’t want to and hadn’t fully believed, but had begun to due to the people who surrounded me everyday. It’s so discouraging and hurtful to try to get to know people who smile and laugh on the outside but blink to reveal dead eyes that bequeath their cold disinterest. No matter how positive a person is, dealing with that on a daily basis can be extremely draining. Ana’s eyes, however, were never like that. They were a warm, chocolaty brown, and were always sparkling like summer stars that were full of life. Having her be so sincere, honest, unapologetically herself in every situation was not only eye opening, but inspiring.

That honesty was probably one of the reasons why we became as close as we did, and I’m so grateful that God brought Ana into my life. Despite her being two years younger than me and only having known her for less than a year, I still feel as though I’ve been friends with her my whole life, and I can’t imagine a world without her presence. I haven’t seen her since August when she went back to Spain, but despite the distance we’ve kept in touch. I miss her, and I can’t wait until she comes back so that we can go hiking again, camp out in my backyard, go on spontaneous trips to Dunkin’, tease each other, and just spend time together. It’s weird to think that if I hadn’t helped her that day, we might not have gotten to be as close as we are, but I’m glad that I did because Ana Lopez is my best friend, and I’m confident that that won’t change any time soon.