As I've blogged about before, you don't get to pick your family. They are with you for life, whether you like it or not. Your friends, on the other hand, are mostly hand-picked. Whether it be in grade school, high school, college or post-school, when you have the opportunity to choose who you would like to surround yourself with, you usually pick people that you enjoy being around.
I am very, very blessed. I have a lot of really great friends. My family is very small on both sides, and I am an only child, therefore friends have always been a key part of my existence. I was lucky enough to come across a lot of spectacular ones in high school, many of which I am still extremely close with today. College provided me with a few more, most importantly though...TOH. I didn't walk away from college with a ton of new friends, (partly because I was still so wrapped up in my high school crew)...but the fact that I met my husband was the icing on the cake. I considered myself one lucky gal.
So, then came all the 'other halves'...you know, the husbands/wives of your friends, which you never know what you're going to get in this situation. I can honestly tell you that I could not have asked for better husbands and wives for my friends or my husband's friends. I could not have hand-picked better ones for them. Not many can say that, right?
A great example is TOH's good friend from high school. They went to different colleges but always stayed in touch...they both got married and months later their wives met and bam...a friendship that will last forever was formed.
To many people, we probably appear very different. But as the saying goes, don't judge by it's cover. She is always on time or better yet, early...I am lucky if I show up 15 minutes late. She plans and prepares weeks/months in advance...I procrastinate until the very last second. However, do we laugh at the same ridiculous stuff? For sure. Do we enjoy each other's company so much so that we email back and forth daily until our fingers are tired? Yes. Would we live next door to each other and still have to call to check in...without a doubt. We have grown to be as close as friends can be without ever thinking about it.
I am so lucky to have been connected with her in my life. I am so thankful for her wisdom, her humor, and her planning skills :) She brings laughter to my life and gives me the strength and the backbone I need when I am weak. She is honest, caring, and looks out for everyone's best interest. I am grateful to have her as a dear friend, even hundreds of miles away, and I couldn't imagine my life without her. To us, she has become family...and just like family, although she may not have been hand-picked by us, she is definitely loved by us.
A friend does not have to think like you, believe in everything that you believe in, or agree with all of your thoughts all of the time...the ones that are the most valuable are those that are there to support you, laugh with you, and love you no matter what. And it makes it even better when they arrive when you're not looking. I couldn't be happier to have her as a part of our lives. She came into it so unexpectedly and she surprised the hell out me...CMB, I am forever thankful for you and for our unexpected, amazing, one-of-a-kind friendship.
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