Day 25

I am grateful for Betsy.

We were neighbors first and then friends, who might call ten times a day. Our kids are close in age, and we'd ring once to tell the other when they made to our home safely. We shared goals, tips, recipes, crafts projects, secrets, hand-me-downs, and mostly, our hearts. She was my go-to girl for everything, someone who always had my back and trusted me with hers.

One of the things we have in common is a morbid way of thinking. Hers developed after a personal tragedy. I simply grew up with mine as a result of my mom informing me of all the terrors there are in the world in an effort to keep me safe. (If I knew about them, I could be prepared to protect myself.) What might come off as dreadful thoughts or dysfunctional future-tripping, we see as logical and precautionary. It's great to have a kindred mind when you have a mindset unlike anyone else's.

She's a breast cancer survivor and going strong. Although she lives in another state now and we seldom see each other more than once a year, our foundation is solid and present, and we just pick up where we left off whenever we connect. We're still prayer partners when trials come, and she's one of those friends who remembers well after my trouble fades from others' minds.

One of the things I love about her is her humility--not thinking of herself as less, but just thinking of herself less. She is so classy, in her sense of style and in how she conducts her life. She is intelligent, funny, wise, tender, and loving, and she makes my life a lovely place just by being in it.

Thank You, Lord, for my wonderful Betsy.