Friendship

Yesterday I learned a lot about friendship.

During the course of my life I have been blessed to call a few incredible women “friend.” I wrote about one of them, my friend and pastor, Lori, a few posts back. Today I want to tell you about another friend who allowed me the privilege of sharing in her special day.

My buddy Laura has now joined the ranks of those of us who can officially claim to have lived a half century. Many find reason to celebrate that milestone with black balloons and AARP jokes. No black balloons for Laura, though.

Ten years ago, she was forty, bald and in a wheelchair, fighting an uphill battle with stage four cancer. I doubt any of her doctors would have placed bets on her seeing fifty. That is, unless they took time to get to know her.

Laura puts the fun back into dysfunctional.

She and I go back a long way, about twenty-five years to be exact. We’ve been pregnant together, sold Tupperware together. Laughed, cried, and leaned on each other. We never say good-bye though years may pass without us being in touch. And then one day we get together and just pick up where we left off. Almost like a revolving door deposits us in the same place every once in a while and then we move on. But somehow we always manage to end up back together one more time. Probably because that revolving door spins inside my heart.

I could tell you of how Laura came running to the hospital in the middle of the night when my son was dying. I could tell you how she ran interference for me when I just couldn’t take another hysterical phone call, or how she held my hand through panic attacks and the loss of my identity. But I haven’t the words to do her justice.

Instead I want to tell you how she finds laughter in the midst of pain, beauty in brokenness, and magnanimous heart in the middle chaos. But how do I describe how lights burn brighter in her presence? Or how humor becomes more healing when she tells the story? I can’t. I can only say I am so blessed to call her my friend.

Happy birthday, Laura! Many, many more!

Abundant blessings!