Rachael Botelho. Where do I even start? I mean how does someone sum up almost six years of friendship with their best friend in one article? How do I put all of Rachael’s achievements and all the things that make her the awesome human being she is into just one article? Well, I guess I’d better start from the very beginning. 

If we’re going to start from the beginning, we’ll have to rewind 5 years and 9 months to when I first met Rachael. Picture this: a tiny little 3rd-grade Keira sitting in the St. Catherine of Siena School’s cafeteria with two other people: a friend from the year before and a new girl. Then, another new girl walks up to the table with a friendly smile. “Hi! I’m new to this school. My name’s Rachael, Rachael Botelho. Can I sit with you guys?” she said. “Yeah sure! I’m Keira, by the way,” I said. “Keira Hyatt.” “Well Keira Hyatt, do you want to play four square with me at recess?” Rachael asked me. “Sure!” I answered. And that’s how it all started. 

Rachael is one of those people who even if you’ve only known her for a few months, it feels like you’ve known her your whole life. She’s just so easy to talk to and relate to. I think one of the reasons why Rachael and I got so close was because we had a lot in common, and we’d talk about that stuff all the time. For example, we both liked Harry Potter and (at the time) we both danced. 

Even if I didn’t like these things, though, I’m sure I would’ve found other things that I had in common with Rachael. She just does and likes so many things, not to mention her great sense of humor. Rachael can make even the dumbest joke hilarious just by the way she tells it. She’s made me laugh until my stomach hurt more times than I can count. 

She’s also incredibly creative and imaginative, which makes her really fun to be around. One time in 4th grade, I was over at her house for a sleepover, and we were getting kind of bored. Then, out of the blue, Rachael came up with a hilarious idea for an iMovie we could make with her mom’s phone. Looking back on it now, it’s kind of cringy, but still really funny. However, making iMovies isn’t the only thing that Rachael’s creativity comes in handy for. Rachael is also a really good artist and writer. And when I say really good, I mean REALLY good. For Christmas of 7th grade, she painted me a picture of Hogwarts that I have on my Harry Potter shelf in my room, and she drew me a picture of The Beatles’ Abbey Road album cover for my birthday last year. 

But art isn’t the only thing that Rachael is amazing at (obviously.) Ever since I’ve known her, Rachael’s been very sporty and athletic. She’s always loved soccer and basketball, and she’s unsurprisingly very good at both of them. She’s tried to teach me the correct way to play them multiple times, but it just never clicked right with me. 

Speaking of which, Rachael’s taught me how to do much more than just to play basketball and soccer. A little over a year ago, I was hanging out at Rachael’s house when she suggested that we go for a bike ride. It was embarrassing, but I had to admit to her that I’d never learned how to ride a bike without training wheels. She immediately said that she was going to teach me how right then and there. It was pretty difficult at first, but after about 15 minutes of persuading me, I finally agreed. It took up a good amount of the summer, but after a lot of help from Rachael and her dad, I was finally able to ride a bike without stopping short every two seconds. Although this is one of the big things Rachael’s taught me, it’s not the only thing. Rachael’s always been the mom friend of the group, so she’s always telling me things that my mom tells me to do. For example, at Camp Mattakeesett last year, she was always telling me to reapply my sunscreen or put bug spray on before going to the campfire. She’s also always given me great advice. I think the two main pieces of advice that I hear from Rachael the most often are “Sleep is more important than school, Keira. You need sleep to be able to function in school,” and “You need to drink more water.” Even though I hear these two things a lot, I just know that Rachael only wants what’s best for me.

Even though Rachael is leaving Montrose next year, I know that that will never change how close we are. I know that when she gets to her new school, she’ll be able to make lots of new friends just by being her sweet and silly self. But I also know that she will always be my best friend. 

Keira Hyatt ‘26, Middle School Editor

26khyatt@montroseschool.org