To My Best Friend on Her Birthday…

The older I get the more I realize how rare… These lifetime friendships.

And even more rare, that we live nearby one another – that our babies are besties, too. Whether they like it or not. 😉

And while it’s easy to romanticize, we know that these relationships are hard-won. Fought over the battlegrounds of forgiveness, loyalty, heartbreak, hilarity and the refusal to shut down or take up offense.

You loved me when I withered, and you didn’t know if I would have the strength to Stay.

You loved me when I flourished and celebrated the victories and have never made me feel ashamed of winning.

Truthfully, we’ve been through a whole lot, you and I. And you deserve a fair amount of credit for the way we find ourselves these days… Through literal blood, sweat, and tears.

We’ve seen each others’ babies born and stood by one another when the heartbeat wasn’t anywhere to be found.

We’ve walked down each others’ aisles, straightened wedding gowns, tucked whisps of hair and buckled shoes.

We’ve fielded 2am phone calls and “I need you here right now” and “Please don’t judge me, but…” We’ve helped each other avoid mistakes and had to learn when to let go and give the other the freedom to fail. And when the failure and the heartbreak and the tears came, we’ve never said, “I told you so.” At least not that I recall.

We’ve shared a love of Jesus – prayed and contended and worshiped together. And maybe that’s part of what keeps us buoyant. (It definitely is…)  We’ve found safety and contentment and rest in knowing we aren’t each others’ only hope… We are simply beautiful ornaments in one anothers’ lives. And so we get to enjoy each other in gratitude instead of clinging in a way that’s oppressive or constricting. Wasn’t that lesson hard-won, too?

 

You’ve made me feel beautiful in the most practical ways – fixing hair, fixing eyebrows, and policing my ever-developing fashion sense. It’s one of the things I love most about you – your affinity for beautiful things and your ability to bring the beauty out of every interaction in your life. Even when it’s so much more difficult than you or I think it ever needs to be, somehow, when it comes to you, it’s just so pretty.

You’re someone that I respect, someone that I trust, someone that I love.

And just for mentioning’s sake… I know “Best Friend” can seem like a trite or tacky term. As though I have my friends ranked in order from one to xyz in my mind (I haven’t). No, I use “best” not as a rank, but as a type and title. It’s the type and title of a friend who has seen my absolute worst and my absolute best and loves me anyway.

You are the best kind of friend. Because sisters are different, and “special friend” sounds suspicious. (lol!) You are my best friend – fierce and loyal and protective, safe and compassionate and loving, ridiculous and adventurous and beautiful. And I’m so happy you were born.

Happy Birthday. You’re super old. 😉 ❤