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| My best friend's daughter! |
My best friend in high school died from breast cancer about 10 years ago. Gene and I were on vacation when I received the call. The news really took the wind out of my sails for awhile. How could someone so beautiful from the inside-out be gone at such a young age? I sat for a long time, watching hummingbirds sipping from a feeder and trying to make sense of it. I had to finally stop thinking about it because it was crazy-making. There are some questions I just do not know the answer to. I have to be okay with that.
Fast forward to yesterday. I had lunch with my BFF's daughter, Amber! She drove over from Yakima and we met up with the Red Cross to donate blood and afterwards visited over lunch. I was a little teary eyed when I first set eyes on her. She has her mother's smile, her dad's eyes and she is as sweet as her Grandma Betty. I gave her some old photos I had been saving for her and she gave me a little ceramic teddy bear figurine from her mom's collection.
I was feeling guilty yesterday because I had posted on FB something about meeting with my BFF's daughter. I'd rather suffer a bad toothache than hurt anyone's feelings. So, if you are my old high school friend and you are reading this blog post and/or you saw my FB post, you, (YES, YOU!!) were my best friend, too! Here's the thing. I have many best friends. As a matter of fact, if you're my friend, you are my best friend. While I ran hard with Amber's mom in high school and we knew each other so well, we each had other friends and I know she loved her other friends as much I loved mine.
Amber, if you're reading this, I want you to know that having lunch with you and seeing your mom in your smile was a real gift for me. I hope we can do it again when you're in town.
love, susan
Absolutely beautiful Susan!! The way you describe her made me realize I would like her as much as you do, anyone with "grandma Betty's" heart is special indeed. She does look like a combo of her mom and dad....I can't believe it has been that long since Lisa died. Where does time go???
ReplyDeleteOh Kathy,I wish you could have been there. I'm telling you ... it was really special!!!
DeleteReading this made me think of two things:
ReplyDeleteMy BFF died a tragic death at the age of 23, leaving behind a 5 month old baby boy. He would be close to 33 years-old now, and I have never met him. But I have all of the notes she passed to me in school, and all of the letters she wrote to me when we lived states apart from each other. I've kept them to give to her son someday if I am ever blessed enough to see him. I want him to know her personality through her written words.
And...
I thought of my late mother-in-law. Anytime one of her children asked, "Mom, you love me best, right?" She answered, "Yes." To all of them. When I married her son, the middle child, I asked her about that tradition and she told me, "It's true. I love all of them the best because I love them the best that I can." After that, I started chiming in with the rest of them, "Mom, you love me the best, huh?" And she always answered, "Yes."
That's EXACTLY what I was trying to say with this blog post! Like, how do you rate one friend being a better or best over another? I love 'em all the best I can ~ exactly!!
DeleteI am sorry for the loss of your friend, but how special that you had the opportunity to have lunch with her daughter. I can only imagine how wonderful it was to see your friend in her, and to remember the special relationship you shared. I'm sure Amber enjoyed visiting with you and remembering her mother, through your memories.
ReplyDeleteWhen my sons were little, I'd say to one "Don't tell your brother, but I love you more." And I'd say the same thing to the other one. :) (Knowing of course that they WOULD tell eventually) Now they are grown adults and they often joke to each other that "Mommy loves me more". It's funny, but now my daughter-in-love chimes in that I love her more than I love her husband (my son). There's always enough love to go around.