Last night, in sunny San Francisco, in an Irish pub, with whiskey and beer, my world’s collided. And it was awesome.

Both my best friends, Vanessa and Annie, have been living in San Francisco for a bit. Unfortunately every time I visited, I could only see one of them. This time, we changed that.

I’ve known Vanessa since 7th grade. She knows everything about me. Everything. To this day, Vanessa has always shown me what a thoughtful, independent, free woman looks like: beautiful.

And Annie is the sweet soul whom I met many years later. Ever since, she’s shown me what a joyful, loving, loyal woman looks like: a gem.

These lovelies had never met before, but they know all my stories; they’ve also been there to help me write them. And having them under the same roof was a good reminder to surround yourself with people who lift you higher. Because friends are the family you choose.

See that smile? Yeah, I did good.