My Friend

They say (whoever "they" is) that if you're lucky in life, you get one, maybe two, true friends in life.  Seven and a half years ago, that "true friend" fell into my life and my heart with a bang just when I needed her most in my life. Our friendship was not one that had to grow....It was just there from the moment we met.  And now she is gone.

I have done pretty good since Wednesday.  I've held it together pretty good.  Until this morning.  My friend, my true friend, is gone and my heart is breaking.  She loved me.  I loved her.  I mean truly loved her.  I just hope she knew it.  I got to the ICU just in time to tell her one more time how much I loved her and how much her friendship had meant to me.  I hope she heard me.  I'm going with she did.  My heart hurts

I look around my home and see all these precious "things" she gave me over the years.  I sat at the dining room table last night she and her husband gave us as a gift when we moved in our house last year.  I wore one of the scarves she gave me just this week, I turned on a Christmas Santa Sleigh she gave me once because she knew I would love it.  I see her everywhere.  I have a coffee cup here with her name on it so she could have a special one when she came to visit.  My heart hurts.

My heart hurts because she's never going to be able to jump in the car with me and run to the mall for
a quick nighttime adventure or go with me to get our nails done.  I wish I could count how many pampered chef, Mary Kay, jewelry, or thirty-one parties we went to and all the church activities we attended together.  My heart hurts because she will not be at family birthdays and holiday gatherings.  My whole family, momma and daddy, my sister and her crowd, always expected Frank and Linda to be at our gatherings.  She has a big picture of Charly on her mantel and Adalai thought she hung the moon.  They WERE family.  Frank still is, of course, and he is as dear to us as Linda.

 What a husband to her he was.  A lot of men could take lessons from him and his 47 years of devotion to her.  Like he said this week, "She was a spoiled rotten brat."  Well, she wasn't really a brat but he did have her spoiled and he loved it and so did she.  After 47 years, her face would light up when he walked in the room.

Over the past year and a half or so, our adventures dwindled because of her declining health.  She did come to Charly's first birthday party the end of September even though we all knew she really didn't feel that great.  That was the last family outing she was able to attend.  She had a couple stays at the nursing home for rehab and many hospital trips and that big trip to Duke.  My outings were not the same.  I missed her in the front seat of my car trying to buckle her seat belt and know she missed going with me.  My heart hurts.

Our church became her family.  She walked in that church for the first time and everyone loved her and she loved everyone.  She and Frank were baptized just this summer.  This was something she wanted so desperately.  I am so thankful it happened.  It had to be rescheduled many times because of health issues but she and Frank were properly "dunked" as we teased.

On Monday, we will say our final goodbyes.  We will all go home and remember the beautiful person that Linda was.  We will all be forever thankful for having known her for these few short years.  I had this true friend who loved me and my family.  I am a better person because I had Linda as the best friend anyone could ever have asked for.

Rest in peace my precious friend.  I love you.  Thanks for loving me.