Last Thursday night, I was like a little kid, waking up every couple of hours, “Can I get up yet?” Two of my Memphis friends were visiting Chicago, and I was having coffee with them downtown on Friday morning. I left the house a little bit early, walking to the train in the mist. I caught an earlier train. And it didn’t take me as long to walk to their hotel as I thought it would, arriving WAY too early like when I interviewed for my first real job. I sat in a soft chair in the lobby, excitement bubbling out my ears. I am sure that the concierge thought I was up to no good. I texted them of my arrival.
For the next two hours, we talked nonstop. And it was sweet all the way through. God used them to fill me up again.
Good friends are a blessing from God. And even though there have been so many good-byes through the years, and our paths have spun off in dozens of different geographic directions, and we live hundreds of miles apart like little pins on a map of the world, we are still running side by side. So close that I feel like I could reach out and hand you a Snickers. And the conversation keeps going on and on. Quick texts. Phone calls slipped in between busy schedules. And the delight of a personal email, jammed amidst news alerts and daily Gap advertisements. Those are the first things I read. Keep ‘em coming. Online hugs. Or a cry for prayer. Or a shout of victory. Or news of a well-needed encouragement. Goodness and struggles. We carry those heavy and bulky bundles for each other, you know, the ones we never expected, the ones too hard to carry alone. And sometimes all we can do is listen and pray. And rejoice in the blessings that knock at midnight on the back door, you know, the ones we have been praying for and the ones God surprises us with.
Love you friends. Sometimes it is years between visits, but I will always be there for you. Count on it. Can’t thank God enough for you.
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