Let me begin by wishing you Many Happy Returns! God has blessed you with 18 years, and with his grace, I'm sure he'll give you many more years to come.

I first met you during the AHS Sophomore's night. You had long hair back then. We were officially introduced during the AHS salu-salo, and that was it. Sure, we would see each other around because we were both enrolled in SEP, about 2 summers ago but we never really hung out.

Days, months, years. I finally got to know you, but it took a long time. To be honest, I was slightly afraid of you because of the way you carried yourself, and of course, the way you speak. Seriously, you're the first person I know who can speak really great English. (Nosebleed! Someone hand me a box of tissue.)

I never expected for us to be friends, and I'm really surprised that we have so much in common! We both love reading, dictionary.com's word of the day, sudoku, crossword puzzles, musicals, wasabi popcorn, frozen yogurt, shopping, running, and many more.

Turns out, you're not as scary as I pictured you to be. You're really friendly, warm, talented, intelligent, and just brilliant. I admire you for being strong, despite the trials you're going through, and how you treasure your real friends and the way you look after them. You're really beautiful, inside and out, and I hope you stay that way because you really do bless people, especially me.

I pray that you and Kevin will have a lasting relationship (I know you both will) and I also pray that you make the most of your senior year. I wish you the best. Happy Birthday once again, and God bless you and your family. ILOVEYOU! Infinite x's and o's.

P.S. I hope to see you in Cornell! I'm seriously considering Cornell, along with Brown, Princeton, Georgetown, and Columbia.