Illustration by Allegra Lockstadt.

Illustration by Allegra Lockstadt.

Everyone has that one friend that they are always with. Lucky for us, we’re best friends who just happen to be twins—wombmates, if you will. Whether we’re dancing and yelling “GO BEST FRIEND, THAT’S MY BEST FRIEND!” or just doing homework, being together is always a good time. But as much as we love each other, we sometimes find ourselves mindlessly scrolling through the internet as opposed to enjoying the moment. Maybe you and your bestie feel the same way? Here’s what we do when we need to step back and reset.

Write a collaborative poem. There are a few different ways to do this one. You could take turns: One person could write a line or stanza, and then the other. Keep passing the notebook or piece of paper back and forth until you’ve found a place where you want to stop. Or you could both pick a word, idea, or theme and write separate poems. When you’ve finished, meld the poems together to create a brilliant new piece of art. This is especially fun and challenging for us ’cause we have very different writing styles.

Swap clothes. If you are itching to update your wardrobe and have a friend with great style, invite them over to swap clothes! Put on your favorite ’90s R&B, gather some clothes you don’t mind letting go of, and stage a Clueless–caliber trying-on montage. Extra points if you and your friend have different styles—this is a fun way to try out a look you wouldn’t have thought of before. If you and your friend are different sizes, you can still trade jewelry and accessories! We do this so often that by this point we practically share a closet. So don’t be surprised if you keep swapping clothes with each other.

Make a short film. There are so many possibilities with this one. All you need is a camera—you can use the one on your phone—and some creativity. You could film a day in your life with a documentary-style video. You could write a short script, and take turns acting the scenes out. You could even get avant-garde and shoot artsy videos of things in your neighborhood. Maybe even stage the poem you both wrote in the background if you’re really trying to sweep the Academy Awards!

Write commemorative letters. Not able to be there for every special moment of each other’s lives? Write letters about them! Write a letter for each occasion that you might not be together for. This could be as big as graduation day, or as small as acing a hard test. Or: Write a whole bunch of letters and give instructions about when and where to open them. Really going for that awww factor? Hide the letters and give your friend clues about where to find them on the day you want them to be opened.

Create a secret code. This is not only fun to make, but it can also really come in handy in the future. Think of situations that you might be in with your friend when you would need to keep things secret, and replace important words with random phrases. Some of them can be practical, like a code for when you need your friend to break out her wing-woman skills. We have secret phrases for when we’re trying to ward off people with creepy vibes. We’ve even thought of what to say if one of us ever becomes a CIA agent and needs to jet off to another country! ♦