3,000 Miles Apart- Katie Thermos

3,000 Miles Apart from Katie Thermos on Vimeo.

March 5, 1995; to the world it was just another day, to my parents it was a miracle, as for myself, it was the beginning of my life. I was born at 10:56 a.m. with my twin sister Emily following at 10:58 a.m. We were born two minutes apart, and inseparable since then. But it is not only that, it is not just that she has been there for me since birth. She has been there for me since the moment of my existence, from the exact time of conception. We shared a womb, a room and most importantly a bond unlike any other. My twin sister and I are as opposite as could be. Emily being the athletic, shy, left brained one and myself being the outgoing, artistic and right-brained one. It is as if we complete each other. Where one lacks, the other one exceeds. We shared our room for 18 years, we may have had some fights; she was the clean one I was the messy one, but nothing could come in between what we meant to each other. Senior year approached and we started applying for colleges, in search of the place that would lead us in the path of success for our future careers. We both considered in and out of state colleges but I was more set on staying in state than she was; in fact I was about 95% decided on CU Boulder from the start of the process. Emily was more indecisive. We both applied for scholarships but Emily went after a very prestigious one, the Daniels Fund, which gives the student a full ride scholarship to the school of their choice. My sister in hope of receiving the Daniels fund applied to Hawaii Pacific University. She also applied to University of Northern Colorado and other schools where she could pursue nursing. No surprise, she received the Daniels Fund and she deserved it. She was in the paper and even on Jay Leno for it. She had worked so hard for it and everyone was thrilled, including myself. However deep down, I could not help but become sad. I knew the outcome of the reward; she would be going to school in Hawaii. How could this possibly be bad, why would I be so upset? She would be going to school in one of the most beautiful places in the world. It was on my own selfish accord that I did not want her to go, I wanted her to stay in Colorado with me. How on earth would I ever be able to survive without her, and her without me? I was excited for her and praised her with everyone else but I never came to my full emotions until the day she left. I left for school on August 22nd and she planned to leave on the 23rd so that she could move me into my dorm room. The night before I left we were both unable to sleep. Emily, our dog Henry and I all spent the night in her bed for one last time. We cried ourselves to sleep knowing the next time we would see each other we be Christmas Break. With only a few hours of sleep we got up the next morning and began our drive to Boulder. It was a little stressful moving in, and getting everything into my dorm room. Once it was done, we looked at each other and realized it was time to say goodbye. We hugged each other and cried; there were no words that could have described our feelings. We both knew that. Our tears, just like our feelings were running together, not distinct from one another. She left with my parents that day, and the next day she was off to Hawaii and off to her future. It was not just that it was painful for her to leave; it was painful knowing that things would never be the same again. We would never be living in the same room again, going to the same school and having the same routine. That is the hardest part of growing up, change. Change is meant to be embraced because resisting it will only set one back in life. So that is my plan, to embark on my journey as an advertising student while she goes on hers in Hawaii as a nursing student. I miss her more and more every day but it would be selfish of me to wish she were home. There is a quote that goes “missing someone is not about how long it has been since you’ve seen them or the amount of time since you’ve talked. Its about that very moment when you find yourself doing something and wishing they were right there by your side.” Walking through campus, on a hike or even in my dorm room I wish she could be here with me. She is now 3,000 miles away, but she’s never been closer to my heart. I wish her the best of luck and sit here today knowing that there are 110 days until December 17th, when she comes home for Christmas.