I mean it because in my phone lies a WhatsApp group. The extension to my group of friends in real life. A group that has all my girlfriends talking about any and everything in life.  

It started with convenience. Instead of messaging each and every one of the girls, it was convenient to coordinate by sending a message to all in one go. Whether it was to go out for lunch or just outside for a walk. 

Slowly, the group became a little more than mere coordination to meet for lunch. It went on to sharing memes we related to hard. And when there are memes, there is no going back.  

Eventually, it got to sharing the deepest secrets us girls would rave and rant about.

It was a virtual support system I had with me right there in my bag, at all times. I carried them close to me everywhere I went. 

Even though my friends were in different cities, I knew they were around and we were together thanks to the group we made on WhatsApp. Whatever I had going on in my mind, they were always audience to my day, interested in knowing how it went.

I once spotted a cute kitten on the side of the road. The next thing I know, I took my phone out, almost like a reflex, to tell the girls about it. Like it was the most important event. And I got the most satisfying reaction, that in turn lead to the best conversation of the day. 

Out of nothing, we were sharing voice notes of us laughing. And just like that, they made the most ordinary of days into a great memory.

The WhatsApp group was witness to (A LOT of) moments of self doubt — but thanks to the conversations that tiny instrument held, it always turned to me feeling like the woman of year. It was the ego booster we all needed. 

Be it the hesitance to meet the boy’s mother. Or feeling awkward sitting alone with no one around. On the group we had conversations about it all. Giving me the confidence to face the toughest of situations.

This group had the power to light up the dullest of days. 

Every time I would have any issues, I turned to the group, sent a long message, and instantly felt better. They were like having a journal that spoke back with great advice.

The girls were the answer to all my boy troubles. Every time I had the slightest of issues, my girlfriends would be kick in full action mode, like bandaids to anything that went wrong.  

Be it boy drama or family drama, my girls had my back. Giving suggestions and being the patient listeners to my problems, they were the solutions a student looked for after every chapter in the maths book.  

If someone was to go through our group gallery, it would be normal to find at least 20 photos of online shopping screenshots captioned, “This, or this?” The crazy selfies I could only afford to send over the group were next. 

And the amount of times they’ve saved me from the confusion of putting horrible photos as a DP! Countless. They were the knights in shining armour hidden in encrypted messages. 

The WhatsApp group had seen EVERY kind of conversation in its history. From a “Guys, I’m bored” to “Guys! Guess what just happened?” with everything in between. 

(Currently we are discussing the latest TV show and what should/should not have happened.)

I knew my girls would be the happiest to receive any form of good news, a new job or just an, “I successfully finished all the fruits without even one gone rotten.”  

Every happy story, every good news was celebrated double the times. 

They would also always lend in a virtual ear to all my complaints. Rational or not.  

The WhatsApp group had become the very thing that helped me through living life.  

It wasn’t just the casual, superficial issues we took seriously. We discussed what’s happening around the world, how life has changed over time. Maybe argued a little over it too. But after a while, life was moving on and there were always more important issues to be discussed.

I don’t know where I would be without the girls today. I feel grateful that I always had them around, who made me feel confident about nailing any and everything. They made me feel like I could conquer the world. 

It’s worth marvelling at, what a simple group of girls can do with just reassurance and a few words of advice given over a WhatsApp group conversation.