Friends from Bauru have exchanged letters for 15 years and maintained a friendship for almost 30 years. Have you ever imagined maintaining a friendship through letters for years? That's exactly what happened to Amanda Siqueira de Araújo and Melina Bellini, friends who started exchanging written messages in 1999, when they were just 10 years old and studying together in Bauru (SP). In an interview with g1, the friends recall how exchanging messages helped to build a friendship that has lasted almost three decades and continues even though one of them lives outside the country. This Monday (20), Friend's Day is celebrated. ? Join the g1 Bauru and Marília channel on WhatsApp Amanda and Melina are about to celebrate 30 years of friendship, which became stronger after exchanging letters in their teens Personal archive At the time, Melina changed schools, but the distance between the two was still small, as they continued to live in the same city. Even so, the friends decided to create a different way of keeping in touch through letters sent by mail. "When I changed schools, we were very worried, because I said: 'what now?' It seemed like I was going to change countries. Communication [between us] was very important. And then we said: 'let's write letters. That's how we started", says Mel, who is a computer scientist. READ ALSO Long-term friendship: Discover the story of the friendship that began at the bar and extended into life Friend's Day: teenage friendship strengthens in college and turns into a partnership in a successful business Friend's Day: two decades ago, a group of 25 friends held an annual meeting to celebrate friendship According to Amanda, who now works as a journalist, telephone calls at the time depended on parental authorization and had a high cost. Therefore, the two pre-teens chose to write to each other, with their parents in charge of taking and collecting the letters from the post office. “Our parents, in the beginning, helped a lot,” says Mel. “And I remember a lot, my parents were happy when Mel's letters arrived [...] Even when we started to have technology, they also encouraged us to continue with the letters”, adds Amanda. Parents encouraged the exchange of letters between friends in Bauru (SP) Personal archive For 15 years, Amanda and Mel communicated through letters. With the arrival of adulthood, the two began to meet in person more frequently, but they never completely left the role aside, which always left their relationship intimate, even without physical presence. "I felt very close to her. I felt like I was talking to her right there in front of me. And it was a friendship in which I didn't need to pretend", says Amanda. Amanda Siqueira de Araújo and Melina Bellini have been friends since 1999, when they were 10 years old Personal archive Letters kept stories from adolescence Initially, letters were sent once a month. Therefore, the messages needed to summarize what the period was like. The topics were varied and followed the stages of their lives: from routine news to memorable moments of adolescence. “What I think is the coolest thing is that there’s a lot of our lives there, right? There's the first kiss, there's the first suffering over some kind of flirtation", recalls the journalist. In addition to the updates, they also gave each other gifts during the exchange of messages. While the journalist was a fan of singer Felipe Dylon, the biologist accompanied Avril Lavigne. "When I saw Avril's poster, I sent it to her and vice versa", reveals Amanda. Friends exchanged letters after one of them changed schools Personal archive Mel says that the letters were also decorated, especially with the support of teenage magazines that were a rage in the 2000s. “I had several magazines. I would take the pages and stick them to the letter", she describes. The dynamic of letters decreased after Mel moved to Canada in 2015, but the friendship remained, including some reunions in this period of greater geographic distance. For both of them, the secret to maintaining the bond for so many years lies in acceptance and the freedom of each person to follow their own path. "I think it is very important for you to accept how the person is. So, a friend has to be that comfortable place, that safe haven. I can't pretend I'm different so she likes me. This never existed", says Amanda. Friends met again after one of them moved to Canada Personal archive