Today

Today is our goodbye party, or "send off" as I prefer to think about. Some very special very dear friends have decided to be selfless and host today's event. It takes strong, truer than true friends to be able to do that. Me? I'd be unpacking my friend's boxes as they pack and probable let the air out of their moving truck tired!! (don't anyone get ideas!!!)
This morning I woke up filled with anxiousness, and I had to cry out to God for strength to face today. For anyone else who's moved like this you know the feelings. I've done it twice and internationally and every year while overseas I had to say goodbye to people who would leave the mission field or move. Not easy that's for sure.

My brothers and I talk often about how we've each individually handled goodbyes and moves. It's so easy to become calloused to it, but that makes it harder to then make new friends, so that's not good. Early on I made the conscience decision to try to avoid callousness and so I've become the person who's ultra sensitive and cries more than probably necessary. I cry when I'm sad, I cry when others cry, I cry at sentimental commercials, I cry just because! But sometimes it gets do hard that I bottle all my emotions up until after goodbyes and I'm alone and then I cry my eyes out!

Today will be so difficult, but it's because we've been blessed with so many amazing and wonderful friends! If we didn't, it'd be easy to leave.

I occasionally tell people about how long it took me to make friends when I moved to CA. 5 years!!!! Now I had great people in my life, but to make the kind of friend I could call on a bad day, or truly open up to, it took a while. Now my work family was a different story, they were there for me from day one and I had awesome mother figures to go to as I adjusted to culture shock and being a newlywed. They saw me grow up from a scared young girl to a confident women! :) and then God brought my awesome friends into my life that have walked life with me the past 4 years!! (you know who you are!) I've been so blessed!!! I haven't had friends like this since I was 12 and had to bid farewell to the two most important girls in my life at the time. And as adults we make friends differently and I think deeper. It's amazing that our circle of friends has grown throughout the years and how God has brought each couple into our lives!! I can honestly say that I have the best friends in the world!! And if you consider yourself my friend then I'M the blessed one!!!

Today is also the day that you all find out I have this blog!! Eek!!! I'm a bit nervous!! I'm not an English major, nor am I the most eloquent of people, I just like to share! :)

Not sure how I'll be making it through today, but I do know that I'll be relying on my God's strength to walk it with me.

Philippians 4:13 "I can do ALL things through CHRIST who strengthens me."