At this time a week ago...I was packing to head home for Thanksgiving break and anxiously awaiting the moment my best friend Amy and I would be reunited for the first time since August! Just as much as Bethel was the school for me, Evangel was the school for her...And so, I moved to St.Paul, Minnesota while she headed down to Springfield, Missouri. For growing up 3 minutes from one another (Amy timed it), attending the same high school, and being virtually inseparable for the entirety of our junior high/high school years, we both really struggled with the distance aspect of our futures even though it meant so many exciting new things for each of us.

The most beautiful thing I've gotten to witness in my friendship with Amy is how selfless she is in giving to the people and things that she loves. She is truly a lover, an encourager, and a supporter no matter who you are, where you come from, or what you're facing. Her love for Christ and His command to LOVE is so vividly and tangibly portrayed in the way she lives her life. She truly has the heart of a servant.

Around 6pm Monday night, we were officially reunited for dinner, coffee with two of our other great friends, and a sleepover. I'm pretty sure sleep didn't even cross our minds until two in the morning because we were so busy catching up on all that God has been doing in our lives over the last three months. While I am so thankful for FaceTime, texting, long phone calls, and social media...NOTHING...absolutely NOTHING...will ever compare to face to face conversation and hugs from my person.

There is so much to be grateful for and so much that we've been blessed with, but I am convinced that nothing will ever amount to the value of the relationships we form. Our people, our mentors, our soul sisters, our brothers from another mother (does anyone say that anymore?)...THOSE people are precisely the people we should be thanking God for each and every day of our lives, no matter what we are facing or what currently has our attention.

I've been carrying some heavy news around for a few weeks now and there just could not have been a better time for Amy to be home to help me sort through some of the things I've been feeling. When we sat down on her bed Monday night, the first thing she said to me was, "So, how are you REALLY feeling about everything going on?" And before answering, I just sort of laughed and thanked God. Because she's my person...the Christina to my Meredith, some might say. And I simply could not do life without her.