But Ruth said, “Do not press me to leave you or to turn back from following you! Where you go, I will go; where you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God my God…” – Ruth 1:14, NRSV
My person left today.
My person is my longest standing friend, who I met the day we moved into freshman dorms. Freedom and fear mixed together for an exhilarating cocktail as we waved goodbye to our parents and borrowed each others clothes. Two sheltered girls became two cautious young women, and when she moved back to her city I followed after a few years.
In fact, until I got married, we lived together in her big city. Laughing, cooking, petting dogs, watching romantic comedies, eating, shopping, and eating some more.
She knows my secrets. She stood within arms reach of me while I made the worst decisions ever conceived and let me live out their course, all the while knowing that she would have a human puzzle to reassemble. And, reassemble she did. Not just once.
There was the best, though, which sustained us through all seasons. She stood just as close, holding my bouquet, when I spoke vows to my husband. Later, she held my son while I told her about spending another day in my pajamas.
We know no more lyrics to “Here Comes the Hotstepper” than we did in 1994, and we still know that a little chocolate is not just a band-aid, but medicinal.
This is my person, and today she leaves her home, three minutes from my doorstep, and moves across the country. So, today, we cry.
Have you ever cried these tears?
I have learned well, though, because I need her.
She did not teach me that. Jesus taught me that I need my friend, my person, my sister. I need women in my life who stand within arms reach for such a time as these. They reassemble our human puzzle while feeding us chocolate and holding our used Kleenex. They dress up and witness our joyful moments. They carry the annals of our history so that we remember, while carrying our phone so we don’t forget it at the house.
Do you have one of these? Call her, text her, tweet her AND email her today and tell her how grateful you are to God that she simply exists.
Do you need one of these? I pray courage into your life to find your person. I don’t make friends easily, so I know the effort that friendship can take, especially when you have been burned by careless relationships in the past. To honor the love I have for my dear old friend, I will look for new sisters to practice all the skills that she taught me. I have a few ideas to make it easier on us.
This week, you and I can…
- When someone says, “How are you?”, be real with a touch of humor.
- Facebook or call an acquaintance that seems interesting.
- Make a play date for the kids, or dogs, or yourself.
- Leave a comment, with a question, on a blog that you love.
- Ask someone to pray for your quest. (The ladies at Internet Cafe would love to pray for you! Simply leave a comment below. Have courage! You are not alone. I am really doing this, too!)
Hang in there, friend!
Awesome words of advice, be blessed.
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Pray I find that friend,going through messy divoce,feeling scared,alone PRAY for me
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Praying for you right now, Carolyn. I pray that God will send women to your side even now. I pray that you will be strengthened by their presence and vulnerable to their love. Strength to you, my sister!
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This was a great entry to read this week; just a few days ago I called up a really nice friend of mine who I had lost contact with (I moved away about 2 years ago). She was the person I could say anything to, she has always helped me, and she was the one there for me when I was trying to find God and had nothing but questions.
As much as I would love to have someone like that who lives within walking distance, the least I can do is make an effort to nurture the friendships I built before I moved away.
Thanks for writing!
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Oh K., how wonderful that you have had those relationships in the past and you feel that you can revive them! I do pray for new friendships for you, though. I even pray for friends within walking distance!
Isaiah 43:19, “I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the dessert.”
I pray for this new thing for you, in this new place. Thank you, K..
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What a blessing to have such a wonderful friend – hugs
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I really enjoyed your blog today! It made me realize how much I really need a good friend. I get so caught up being a mother that I don’t realize that I too need someone to lean on, other than my husband. If you could pray that I would find a friend such as this, I would really appreciate it!! Thank you and God bless you! You are an inspiration!!
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I understand what you are saying. Being a mom makes us an island before we know it! I am learning that we do need other friends, and other moms to tell us that WE ARE STILL FUN, normal, and not alone in the “adventures” of motherhood.
I am praying for you sister. Thank you so much for your kind words.
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Oh Tracy…I feel so out of the loop. Where is our friend going???? I’m so glad that I got to share a few short years being a part of that friendship. Such sweet memories. And yes, that sort of friendship is rare. I pray you can nurture it over the miles. Speaking of miles….God hasn’t okayed our recent decision to move back within walking distance. Thinking he has something incredible up his sleeve…..
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1 year ago on July 16th I lost my dear girlfriend to a car accident I miss her terribly. But I’m so thankful I had that type friendship with her. I don’t see it happening again but I talk to the Lord about it and I’m open and hopeful. Someone to share your secrets and be completely yourself with I love that. That you for sharing this. I really enjoy this site.
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I am so greatful for this entry today! I have the same best friend I have had since I was 2…….only 27 years , right?????lol. We don't get to see eachother much or talk often our schedules are so different, but time with her is always goo! I am a native Texan, relplanted to a suburb of the city I grew up in. We have been here almost a decade and have good neighbors. We had good friends til the end of the last school year. We finally had made couple firends 4-5 to be exact and we liked all of them, we thought for about 5 years that they were our couple best friends. We traveled together, spent holidays together…..then they stopped calling. I tried communicating, but to not much avail. For the life of my husband and I we can't figure it out! What happenened? Thinking back I have seen it happen in this group to several other couples, they weren't true friends I guess. I am going through a loss, need time to grieve, but I also need to give it over to Jesus and move on. Made new friends, hopefully REAL friends. I would like some closeure, but may never and that's ok, God is always there for me and I can turn to him at any time, Sorry for the rambling, just needed to get it off mty chest and I thank you for the suggestions. I will try something today!
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