Finding the words

There are so many times I wish I had eloquent words to describe an event or an experience. This is one of those times. A friend of mine is leaving this earth and going home to her Lord. I am grateful that He has given me even a brief time to know her here and even more grateful that someday we will be able to  continue a friendship that I know has only just begun. Some people touch our lives in a moment, she is one. I am a different person because she touched my life in a real and genuine way. Some of what I know came from talking with her, some through her precious Blogs. But, much of what I know of her I know through my friend Ruth, who introduced us. It is through her sharing that I know some of the best things about Laurie. Through her descriptions, her uncontainable love and admiration for her, her joy as she recalls and retells of her humor and positive outlook amidst the hardest of trials in this life and now the sorrow I hear in that same voice at the thought of her leaving. Friendship is a tremendous gift from our Heavenly Father. It comes in all variations and our friends meet a different set of needs for each of us. Some we laugh with and get silly, some we pour our heart out to in trusted confidence, some we glean wisdom from to help us make solid choices, some are there when things get tough to gird us up, some challenge us to grow. It is a rare gift to find all these in one friend and I am glad Ruth has that blessing in Laurie, and I'm sure she's not the only one. A good friend is a good friend to everyone she knows. Laurie has inspired me in many ways, made me laugh out loud, made me think about how I look at the world, how I respond to my circumstances and what kind of friend and person I am. I am grateful and blessed. Thank you, Laurie.