Being a Forever Friend

When I saw this picture floating around Facebook, I immediately thought of 2 of my "best friends for life" role models.  These girls have been best friends since ... well ... okay, I'll say it ... FOREVER.  And yes, I mean "forever" as in "as forever as it can possibly get here on planet Earth".

I certainly wish I was talking about me and my "best friend" ... I've had a "best friend" at various stages in my life -- 

 high school ... college ... office ... 

return to college (as a "wiser" student) ... teaching ...

And I have reconnected with several of my best friends through Facebook.  My high school best friend and her family were in our vicinity of the world just this past weekend ... and we met for dinner.  We really hadn't "seen" each other and "hung out" for well over 30 years --- and it was AWESOME seeing her again ... and her beautiful family!  As wonderful as it's been to get back in touch with her over social media ... it was even better to see her in person!!!  So many wonderful memories came rolling back in just the couple of hours we all spent at our Outback round table!  And we will be seeing more of each other over the summer ... 

and hopefully after that as well.

However, the importance of friendship was actually modeled for me at a much younger age 

than high school.  I grew up hearing stories of my Mother and her best friend.  Although our family still lived in my Mother's hometown, her best friend had moved away after they had graduated from high school in order to go to college ... and then she moved several states away to be closer to her siblings who had since moved from our hometown as well.

But, as far away as she and my Mother were ... they remained best friends.  No matter what circumstances they went through in their lives -- they have remained best friends for close to 70 years!  

Yes, SEVENTY years ... 

that is truly 

BEST FRIENDS FOREVER

  

 When I think of these 2 friends, this verse always pops in my head ...

A friend LOVES at all times (Proverbs 17:17)  

Sure, true friends can pretty much "tell it like it is" to each other ... but there's one word that I feel is an underlying theme in the whole passage of Proverbs 17 ...

discernment 

true friends know ---

what to say

when to say

how to say

  and they also know 

WHY they are saying

... and by the "why" ---

are they saying it to actually benefit/help their friend 

{or simply to insert their "2 cents worth"}

I will be the first to admit that unfortunately I have not modeled being the "best friend" ... 

sometimes life just takes a turn and priorities may change in the season I'm in ...

sometimes I just simply let time slip by without following-up with friends ...

But no matter what season of life ... and no matter how much time passes by ...

I believe that true friends will always understand and respect the seasons that each other go through.

And these 2 ladies have been the role models through and through ... 

  

When my Daddy had his heart attack this past December, it was actually close to Mother's best friend's birthday.  She and Mother always call each other on their birthdays (and probably about once a month or so), so the lack of phone call sent a red flag.  Day 2 of Daddy's ordeal -- when I took my Mother back home that evening, I asked if she had called her best friend and she said she just hadn't stayed still long enough with all the stress of Daddy's condition.  So, I encouraged her to make the call that evening while she was home.  And she did ... and the first thing her friend said was that had she not heard from Mother in 2 more days, she would have called "Susan" (me) to find out what was going on ... Mother's best friend said she KNEW something wasn't right when my Mother did not call her.  She was so thankful to hear the news that Daddy was doing well and his prognosis ... she did not think twice about the lack of phone call.  She even asked Mother "How are YOU doing through all of this?" ... 

caring and thinking about her best friend was her first concern.

Again, I know that I haven't always been the model of "best friend".  But, each day the focus should be on the One who is truly our Ultimate Best Friend.  Jesus is THE perfect role model of best friend ... He laid down His life & showed us His greatest love by putting His friends (us) before Himself.

And this past weekend, after 30 plus years, it was soooooooooo awesome to see my best friend!  There was never a lull in the conversation around our table ... and it was good to be reconnected face to face.  And I'm looking forward to seeing both her and her sweet family more often -- although we live several hours apart.  Sometimes we all may lose touch with friends and even our very best friends because of the path in life that we each travel ... but when we have friendships that are so real, we will find a way to reconnect -- even if it is through social media.

These were my first "best friends" growing up ... and I still love my cousins!  I'm the blonde who is 2nd from right.

 

 

Celebrating 30 ... Hawaiian Style

So, last fall when he said "I think you & I need to have a little time alone for our 30th"  

I began to toss out some ideas ... we had wanted to go back to the mountains -- 

we could probably squeeze in a couple of extra days at Disney to ourselves -- 

he'd been to Niagara Falls as a kid, but I haven't been -- 

possibility after possibility ... and he kept saying  

"That would be fun.  But that's not where I'm thinking"

 

Then ... when he said "I was thinking about Hawaii" 

  ... my mouth dropped!!!  

And then ... I said the first thing that popped into my head 

"Are you sure???????"

And so ... 

we celebrated ----- 

just him and me ... 

a few weeks pre-anniversary date ---

10 days in O'ahu ...

just me and him

God's grace of our past 30 years ...

fairytale

brokenness

reconciliation

grace

restoration

mercy

redemption

... and it has been worth every moment that has brought us to where we are now ...

Whether in Hawaii ...

or at home ... 

or anywhere else ...

 I am so very thankful for the man that God gave me ...

everywhere and everyday

We started dating September 24, 1983 ...

 we eloped on May 16, 1984 ...

some people may have thought that we just wouldn't make it ...

{and we almost didn't}

But ...

God's grace is ever-so abundant

God's faithfulness is unending

God's redemption is beautiful

Yes, redemption is beautiful ...

Leading Up to 30

Normally I'm not a person who goes for the "milestones" -- such as ages ... turning 18 then 21 then 30 ... marking every decade. 

 {I did, however, hit one milestone almost 2 years ago when I turned 48 -- here's the link to A Silent Milestone )

Then anniversary "milestones" ... 5, 10, 20 years ... 

however, on our 25th Anniversary my husband and I were blessed to share our celebration with our daughter Jacqueline and granddaughter Lucy.  I wasn't blogging in May 2009, but here's a few pictures of our Silver Day ...

 

Much "life" has happened since 5 years ago ... and now we also have an energetic 2 year old grandson Thomas Alexander "Tag" ... and Lucy is quite the little lady at 5 1/2 years old!

 

 My next post will be more of pictures to show how Dan and I have celebrated our 30th anniversary {which will be May 16th}.  

Last fall he had this idea ... "I think you & I need to have a little time alone for our 30th"

So I said ... "Okay.  You know we could probably squeeze a day or so to ourselves at Disney"

To which he replied ... "That would be fun.  But that's not where I'm thinking"

So I said ... "We've wanted to go back to the mountains"

To which he replied ... "And we will.  But that's not where I'm thinking"

And then ... he told me.

To which I replied ...

"Are you sure???????"

So, if you haven't read my posts about "our story", here are the links ...

I know that everyone's story is unique and has it's own ups & downs ---

and ours is no different.

A story of admiring from a distance ... to dating years later ... to eloping after 8 months ... 

to almost ...

Well ... Dan & I are so very thankful for God's abundant grace and unending mercy ...

HE is how we made it to 30.

Links:

Once Upon a Time -- The Beginning of Our Story

When Our Fairytale Met Real Life

Influential Women in My Life

Today ... Mother's Day 2014 ... I want to share a little about some very influential women in my life.  Each of them had a special role that only they could fulfill in helping me to become the woman -- wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt -- that I am today.  

These women ... 

... my Granny and her daughters (my Mother & my Aunts) -- along with another Aunt (my Mother's sister-in-law from her brother) --- I know, I'm not very proficient at family tree descriptions.

I've written in many posts what a close-knit family I had growing up.  And although I've been away from "home" for almost 

30 years, I still enjoy the closeness of my relationship with my family hundreds of miles away. 

These women in the picture all gathered around my Granny ... my Mother is sitting on Granny's lap and is surrounded by her sisters.  My Mother and my Granny were the primary women to take care of me. 

With both my parents working 2 full-time jobs each, they juggled home and work-life ... Mother would take me to work with her sometimes on Saturdays when I was a little girl and then she & my Daddy would take me for an ice cream cone (no Baskin Robbins, Dairy Queen or any other "chain" ... but I looked forward to Broughton's every chance we had to go there).  My parents and I lived with my Granny and youngest aunt until our house was built just "up the hill" from Granny's house. Every night after I brushed my teeth and washed my face, my Mother and I would kneel together and pray. It would our special time together to chat about our day and talk to God.

My Granny was the one who basically was my "go to" ... she was a widow several months before I was born ... she was a pillar in our community and in our church ... she never knew a stranger & would invite anyone in need into her home ... she took care of her family and her friends.  Granny and Mother were probably 2 of the most unselfish people I've ever known in my entire life ... 

as were my aunts ... 

I had a very blessed and "privileged" childhood ... growing up surrounded by my Granny, aunts, uncles and cousins ... each of them gave me a piece of them that has carried me through to this point of my life -- 

... now I'm a Granny ...

... my values, my beliefs, my heritage ... all rolled into my daughter and her family.  I can see my heritage in her and in my grandchildren.  She has always been close to my family -- her great aunts & uncles -- she carries the name of her great-aunt who became our guardian angel almost 34 years ago -- she was my Granny's first great-granddaughter whom she saw for a short couple of months before Granny's faith became sight.  

And our little Lucy carries the name of her great-great Granny ... 

my beloved Granny.

I see traits in each of "my girls" and in Tag that come from the influential women in my own life.  I see our heritage continue throughout these next generations ...

and my heart is filled

And so ...

to those who are mothers today ... 

I pray you have had a blessed Mother's Day that has been Christ-centered and family-loved

to those who are role-models and support systems ... 

I pray that you know how influential you are to those whom you surround

and to all of us women (mothers or not) ... 

I pray that each of us will come to the realization that we don't have to have everything figured out ahead of time as long as we indulge in the abundance of God's amazing Grace

~~~ Wishing each of you a blessed week ~~~