College is filled with plenty of amazing new experiences. For example, you now have the opportunity to go out to fraternity parties, dance with your friends in clubs, drink at bars and you finally don’t have a curfew.
The social aspect of college is very different than high school, and you’ll probably find yourself relying on your friends once or twice to make sure you get home safe. There’s nothing wrong with going out and having a little too much fun every once in awhile; I mean, c’mon, everybody occasionally needs a break from the daily grind of work and studying. Hopefully you’ve made a great group of friends in college that’ll have your back when you need it, and of course you would gladly do the same for them. All of your friends are there for you through thick and thin, and one person that you know you can always count on is your “mom” friend.
She is the one who always makes sure you come home from the party in one piece, while simultaneously trying to limit the amount of cringeworthy stories you’ll have racked up for the next day (but relax, it’s college, everyone makes mistakes). She will drag you away from the cute boy with questionable intentions when you’ve had too much to drink, and you’ll thank her for it in the morning. She’s the one that will always be silently checking to make sure everyone in the friend group is accounted for, which is quite the skill to display amongst a sea of similarly dressed college students all huddled together in a basement.
“Mom” will have the Uber at the ready for the moment she sees her friends starting to make one too many bad decisions. You’ll wake up the next day with a water bottle, two Advils and a granola bar sitting next to your bed, and when you finally get up to greet the living, she will be sitting in the common room with a cup of coffee and a smile on her face, shaking her head, patiently waiting to tell you what the heck happened last night.
Let’s be real though, your mom friend is so much more than just the honorary responsible member of your friend group at parties; she’s also the one who keeps all of you in check in pretty much every aspect of your college life. She’s memorized all of her roommates’ schedules, and she will be there to shove you awake so you don’t miss your 8 a.m. (again). She has a sixth sense of knowing when you’re faking sick and skipping class because you binged watched Netflix until 4 a.m. instead of working on your paper, and she will tell you to deal with it and go to class anyway.
The next night she will force you to come to the library with her and actually work on your paper like you should have done the day before. She’s always down to help you study if you need it, and if it’s in a subject she’s not particularly good at, she miraculously knows someone who is, and will set you up with them.
Not only will she save your life academically, but she will always be there to break up those stupid fights within your crew when they start to get out of hand. You and your friends will get into the inevitable arguments that come with having roommates and being with each other basically twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. She will step in and act as the voice of reason and the mediator you never realized you needed. Girls fight about boys, clothes, cleaning—anything really—but mom will be there to help settle any argument and remind everyone the only reason you were fighting is because you care about each other. If she notices too much tension rising, or if the stress of balancing classes, work and social life is becoming too much, she will suggest a girls night to help all of you relax and unwind.
Most importantly, your mom friend will, without a doubt, be your shoulder to cry on, regardless of what happened or what ungodly hour of the night it is. She will make you a cup of tea and hug you close as you spill your heart about the boy who hurt your feelings, or the girl who made you look stupid while presenting in front of the whole class. Giving great advice is one of her best qualities, and she can make you feel better faster than anyone else can. Her presence is calming, and you’ll be laughing in no time, pushing whatever was bothering you to the back of your mind. Mom will be your emotional rock when it seems like everything is falling apart, and you’ll feel as though you will never be able to thank her enough for all that she has done for you and your friends.
So, when your girl group is finally reunited in the fall for your next semester together, don’t forget to thank your mom friend. She is the reason you made it home alive from the football party in October, the reason you passed your chemistry final sophomore year and the reason you stayed sane through all the drama as a freshman during spring semester. Mom does a lot for you and your friend group, so don’t let her think her efforts go unnoticed or unappreciated. It’s hard work to be the designated mom friend, but as long as all of her friends are safe and happy, then it’s all worth it for her.
