It was 11:45pm, I sat wrapped in a blanket to stay warm in the night air, as I and two old friends sat in the dark beside one of the friend’s pool. The sound of fish jumping in the bay behind echoed in the quiet night, the moonlight dancing on the water. One of the friends quietly talked of the struggles of the last three months dealing with her father’s death. We listened, whispering comfort to her wounded spirit. We understood. We all knew the sting of losing someone we loved. We may not have been together in years, but the bond we shared was formed as young Mom’s trying to raise our babies, pay bills, live life, and walk out our faith everyday. Years have passed quickly. Thirty years to be exact. We laughed at old stories, cried about the struggles of parenting adult children, mused wistfully about dreams we still hoped for, and realized we were thirty year olds stuck in fifty and sixty year old bodies!
I was only with these sweet ladies for twenty four hours, but it was like being with sisters….or maybe cousins….family I haven’t seen in a long while, but because we all love Jesus and had shared life for a time, we were connected. I was encouraged. I realized that growing older has benefits. You have life experience. You don’t fret about things you used to stress about. You’ve begun to realize what is really important. And most of all, sitting with old friends, hearing their stories, their struggles, their triumphs is one of life’s blessings that no one should take for granted.
So, sweet friends, you know who you are, thank you for a nice getaway. I enjoyed the hospitality, I enjoyed the long conversations and I enjoyed the reminder that friends are friends forever, if the Lord’s the Lord of them!!!
