Friends

Cmommy was asking a question today..."Who's your long distance friend?" Well, my best girl friend in the world (my husband being my other "best" friend!) now lives in Alaska. Our friendship has definitely had it ups and downs. When we lived in Thailand together working with a group of missionaries in a college ministry, we shared a TINY room on the 3rd floor of the campus ministry center. All that togetherness (work, home, eating, culture shock, etc.) got to be a little too much for the both of us. We came up with a plan to divide the room in half with some sort of curtain so we didn't have to look at each other all.the.time. Well, we never could really make it work, so we sectioned off a little part of the room with a shower curtain and put a desk behind it. It was well-known that if the curtain was closed, you were NOT to disturb. That was the only place we had that resembled any sort of privacy to think or write or cry or dream.

Our friendship survived that period of strain, and over the last 5 years we've grown closer. We taught high school across the hall from each other for two years until she got married and moved to New England and I quit working to stay home with Caleb. A few months after she got married, her husband took a job in Alaska. I never thought I'd be so far away from my best friend. We've missed so much in each other's lives. She wasn't here when Caleb was born like we thought she would be. I wasn't there to help her pack and unpack and pack and unpack through all the moves she's made in the last year and a half.

But, through the grace of God we've remained close, even though separated by so much distance. That's how it is when God has blessed you with a friend who sharpens you like Lisa sharpens me. We've learned so much from each other in the past 6 years, and I know He will continue to bless us through this friendship. Now if I can just find a way to get her back within a day's drive...