One of my friends has a birthday today (29 again I’m pretty sure.) She is currently living far away from me, which makes it very difficult for me to fulfill her one birthday wish, for fondant, something that it is difficult to obtain where she is currently living.
SO, seeing as how she has taught me most of what I know about friendship, I want to take take a minute to celebrate her (albeit sans fondant) because she does friendship in a way that MOST of us have forgotten.
My friend Erin is UNFAILINGLY LOYAL. I am totally an out of sight, out of mind kind of girl. After college, I basically lost touch with many if not all of my long distance friends until the eventual invention of Facebook.
But, neither miles, nor time, nor differing life schedules could keep Erin from our friendship. On her daily hour long Atlanta commute, she’d call me in Charlotte, catch me up, pray for me, and stick with me. When I moved to Papua New Guinea in 2005, I received a lot of email and a few packages, but there was ONE friend who figured out how to navigate the International calling and 15 hour time difference to call me one lonely day when being on the far side of the earth was too much. Distance doesn’t keep this girl from sticking closer than a sister.
In times when I was depressed and cranky and didn’t answer the phone because she’d be too chipper, my unpleasantness didn’t drive her away. Like Phoebe, she just couldn’t be cut out. She STUCK. She believes the absolute best in people and NEVER gives up on them. Wow!
My friend Erin is ENTHUSIASTIC & ADVENTUROUS. I don’t know if I will be unfriended for sharing these photos, but I think they are basically all that needs to be said about this. I did not even have to scour for these. They were readily available from the last two years. That’s how much fun she is.
Give her an event and a costume and she will just make the rest of the people seem lame and useless (because we are). She will get excited about fun faster than an otter in a fish pond. If you need someone do marketing for, let’s see . . . anything . . . she’s your girl. When I needed bra shopping help for my well-endowed friends at the women’s retreat in Nicaragua, she jumped in with advice from the other side of the globe. Now THAT’S SUPPORT!
My friend Erin is CONTENT. This is because of Jesus. As the years have passed, we’ve all undergone hardship, and her experiences haven’t been a cakewalk. But at the root of it all, she’s trusted in the goodness of God, maintained a smile, and persistently reminded me that she was only a Diet Coke and a taco away from feeling better. I just love that about her. She wanted fondant and petit fours, but because I couldn’t buy those and have them delivered 7000 miles away, I’m hoping this super embarrassing blogpost will do.
There’s so much more that I could say, but since this is a public blogpost and not a card, I will just say, Erin, I love you. You are the friend who loves at all times and sticks closer than a sister even when you’re infinitely further away. You are a true kindred spirit and I’ve learned SO MUCH from you. I never want to thrift shop with anyone else.
Next time you Facetime me when I’m vegged out on the couch limply watching Netflix, I promise I will answer. How many minutes till we live on the same continent again? Only 214560, but who’s counting?
What a lovely tribute to your friend, I too have one like this who has stuck by me since we were 16. Such a gift these people are!!