The Jammas

We were an unstoppable pack of girls, the 13 of us. If we would've been a cartoon, we would've been superheroes. We ranged from wild to studious. What bonded us was the fact that we had created our own little family, The Jammas.

We laughed until our sides ached. We made the others tell us that we were getting too skinny, even if we couldn't button our jeans. We boosted self-esteems. And if you were a boy that wronged one of us, look out!

These girls were my life during college. We were all in the same sorority and had enough happen to us to write a best-selling book. We were silly; we were smart. We were a force to be reckoned with.

I always thought we would stay best friends forever. We all used to discuss how we'd have yearly trips and always keep in touch. Some of us still talk; some of us don't.

It's certainly natural after college to grow apart. We moved all over the place, we got married, we had careers, we had kids.

Some of the relationships were now strained. Some were still in tact. But things were clearly different.

Through the years, I have opened up mass emails from them announcing engagments and pregnancies. And each time I see one of their names, I am taken back to 1998-2002. I remember the good and the bad. I remember the laughter and the tears. I remember the heartache and the joy.

Recently, I have reconnected with many of them. Things are different, but our bond will never be broken.

Looking back, I am filled with bittersweet emotion. The Jammas grew up. We realized there was life outside our tight-knit circle of 13.

But during college, we needed each other. Like Carrie Bradshaw said in "Sex and the City," some of us are born into families and some of us make our own.

And all of us got to do both. We were fill-in mothers and sisters while we were away from home. We were reprimanded when needed. We were given shoulders to cry on. We were each other's biggest cheerleaders. And like family, the love remains regardless of time.

I am proud of all my old friends. College just wouldn't have been the same without them. We lived life to the fullest; we did college in style. And I know we all still have a little Jamma in us, and always will.

Dedicated to: Meggan, Megan, Libby, Penny, Haley, Emily, Christi, Cooper, Kendy, Jessica, Kassi and Jennifer