What makes a true friend? I’m not talking about the girl that sits behind you in math and writes in your yearbook, “We should hang out sometime!” I’m talking about the one who has been with you through it all. They’ve carried you when your own two feet couldn‘t and shared super dorky traditions with you. But that’s what makes your friendship unique and worthwhile. For my best friends and we, the tradition starts with a few crinkled dollars found underneath the washer, two tandem bikes, and a quilt so worn out from memories, the color still remains a mystery.

Tuesday at 4:10, on the dot, at the corner of Maple and 40th was where it all takes place. We meet together, (we being Chloe, Madelyn, Lexa, and I, also known as the crew,) with our two-seater bikes. Attached are baskets equipped with blankets, ipods, and spare change clinking as we go. We enter the lot of the neighborhood farmer’s market, The Orange Patch, parked our bikes in the gravel behind and enter the back door hearing a cling from the chimes above. I am instantly overcome with the sweet scents of oranges, potpourri and sugary snacks. We have to stock up on the “necessities” before the fun actually begins. My job is to get four Jones sodas that will most likely be spilled down chins and spit through noses. I already decide on one strawberry kiwi, two fufu berry and a raspberry tart. No input necessary; these are solid choices. After paying with the torn money and loose change, we take our belongings and head for “the spot,” the back corner of the groves behind the old market where we are engulfed in the big orange trees and clouds above. After we lay down the blankets and goods, of course, dividing equal rations, stories are let loose. This is the one time, one place, where we know anything is said. We cover it all, from the cutest boys to weird dreams and everything in between, until the sherbet colored sky warns us it’s time to wrap things up for the week. We are not even close to being done talking. With four girls, especially us four, there is no end, which is why this is such a vital ritual within our friendship.

Thinking about this unique custom that I know is one-of-a-kind, makes me appreciate the friends I have, that I know I can count on and trust. It is so important to spend time with the ones you love and make those bonds stronger. Especially when it involves scavenged money, quilts, tandems, and dorky picnics.