Eighth grade was a terrible year for me. I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say that when ninth grade started, I had no friends. Imagine my joy, then, when I was granted reprieve from my loner status by Rachel. She was (and is) one of those all around good people, and every time in my life I have looked back and thought about the friendship, I have felt completely grateful that she befriended me. We had so much fun together.
(I don't know why my pictures have these stupid white borders. Ignore the technical difficulties and focus on the content.)
I don't know how to say this without sounding totally corny, but we laughed together, we cried together, she knew everything about me. I think Mr. Peterson wanted us dead in math class because we passed so many notes back and forth (always folded in a crazy origami shape). I felt like I was kicked in the guts the day she told me that she was moving our senior year (and now, dear friend, I've posted a picture of moving day 20 years later. I guess I've exacted my revenge. Except if I was really vengeful I would have not cropped your leggings out. The craziness of my "H-Bomb Truck Routes" t-shirt pales in comparison.)
With distance and time, we had drifted apart, but I always had such happy memories of the friendship. Then, thanks to Facebook we were reunited, and then thanks to real life human contact we had the most wonderful catch-up conversation yesterday afternoon, and when she left I just felt so blessed that such a wonderful person had been in my life.
I've been thinking a lot lately about the friendships that I have and I have definitely been blessed in that capacity far beyond what I am deserving of. Although Rachel was the first, there are multiple circumstances where I met a friend who was exactly what I needed at that time in my life, or where the bond was instantaneous, or the person taught me something that I now couldn't do without. My friends have been there for me through thick and thin- they have grieved with me when I have grieved, they have been more proud of my accomplishments than I have been, and they've dealt it to me straight when I needed them to. Some people have tried to tell me that a good friendship requires 100% acceptance, but for me it doesn't. My friends are like a good mattress- soft, but firm. They love me, for sure, but there are certain things that they are not okay with, and that's what I need in my life. Little did I know when I met Rachel that she was starting me down a path full of amazing friends, but I'm always grateful that she did.
4 comments:
Very nice.
What a beautiful and true post about great friends. I hope that you count me as one of yours. You are definitely one of mine.
Oh Bec, I love you so much. I only feel bad that there were some tough times for which I was NOT there, but I'm so glad that you have found other friends who helped then like you helped me in jr high and high school. And BTW I totally remember those leggings, and let's just say they didn't fly too well in Raleigh either. I don't remember who it was that talked me into getting them, probably Kathleen or someone like that.
Not corney at all. You are the type of friend you describe in this posting. I know from experience! Thanks.
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