I am running out of days to write about important things, so I am combining them into the same day!  I cannot believe there are only 5 more days after today.  I will be 40 this weekend!

Today I am writing about two of my friends.  They could not be more different, but they both have been tremendous gifts in my life.  Both of the kinds of friends that stick with you for the long haul.

The first friend is Tony.  My first memory of Tony was in the summer of 2003.  He was the children’t director for a ministry in Detroit.  Our church partnered with them to help run a day camp and work on some different projects during the week.  We would take a group of middle school students and empower them to lead the different aspects of the trip.  I walked into the large room in the basement of the church and there was Tony yelling at some kid for some reason, in front of the whole group.  I remember thinking, “This is the opposite of how we taught our students to interact with these kids.”  The kids did not seem to mind one bit.  I didn’t know what to make of Tony, but year after year, summer after summer Tony and I became friends outside of that week.

He became a speaker of truth, counselor, brother, mentor and friend.  He was with me through the good times and the bad.  We laughed, prayed and cried with each other.  He was one of the first people we told that we were adopting.  He asked from where.  I told him Jamaica and then he said, “Girl, that boy better not come around here with bad hair and ashy skin.”  I asked him to help me.  I told him how much help we were going to need.  We knew God was calling us to adopt from Jamaica, but we would need help to know how to raise a black child in a white family.  He was quick to remind me of the importance of being called to do something.  If God has called you to do it then He is going to give you what you need to do it.  His words come to mind when I feel lost.  I feel that quite often with my boys.

Tony died suddenly a few months ago.  I got the news and could not believe he was gone.  He was only 50.  My heart broke for his family and the community he was apart of.  He was not just a minister of the gospel, he was giver truth.  He was a friend, brother, counselor, healer and father to everyone that knew him.

Kevin and I were blessed to be able to attend his funeral service.  It was full of passion, worship and wonderful memories of Tony.  There were testimonies of lives that had been changed because Tony was a part of their life.  There was singing, dancing and preaching.  We heard from fellow pastors, family members, community leaders and former day camp kids that were now grown adults.  All shared how knowing Tony had made them better people.  The service challenged me to be better.  I just kept being reminded of the void that was present in Tony’s absence and that it was going to take an infinite amount of people to make up for the loss of one man.  He was truly a treasure and I am thankful that I could call him friend.

My second friend is Barb.  Barb is my faithful friend that I can talk to at all times about anything.  She is like my second mom and she is proud to have me as a daughter.  We laugh together until it hurts. We have walked through a lot of life together.

We were working the same school when we were pregnant for the first time.  She was the second person I told after Kevin.  I was so scared and excited.  She immediately went into mom mode and told me everything I needed to do.  I would have been lost without her.  She was also one of the first people I told when we lost the baby.  She checked on me every day to see if I was OK.  She kept on checking on me after my dad died and still checks on me regularly.  She is always one of the first people I want to share good or bad news with.

A little while after our miscarriage, I got to walk through cancer with her and the death of her dad.  Cancer forged us together stronger than we were before.  She knew that I knew what she was going through.  She would have to stay overnight for her chemo treatments.  I was there for the first one.  They would give her a dose of Benadryl to help with the side effects.  She told me, “This is probably going to knock me out.  So when I’m asleep, you can go back to work.”  I agreed.  She was not kidding.  She was out cold within ten seconds!  It happened so fast that I decided to finish the work I was doing on my laptop before returning to the office.  A nurse came in and asked if she was here for shoulder surgery.  I called the office and told them I would be in later because she needed an advocate to be there.  I waited until her husband came and then went back to work.

Like Tony, her community would be lost without her.  She keeps an entire elementary school running smoothly.  She handles teachers, parents, administrators and students.  She can organize a fundraiser and give out ice for all the bumps and bruises that happen in elementary school.  She is amazing with numbers and has a listening ear.  She does not give herself enough credit for how amazing she is or how blessed the people in her life are.

My life would not be the same without these two people.  I am so thankful that I can call them friend.  I am thankful for the their patience with me and their willingness to stick with me through all of life’s crazy moments.  I pray I am and was as good of friend to them as they are and were to me.