Hilarious, Kind, Forgiving, Wise, Brave

These are just a handful of words to describe my dear friend and sister in Christ, Tricia. Not to mention, she has the most infectious laugh. To strangers it might seem like more of a cackle. But to those who knew her well, it was a sign that she was just getting started. It was today that I realized I actually don't really remember NOT knowing her. Our parents were friends so my childhood is filled with memories of being with her: Camp, church, school, VBS, Friday nights at The Fold, and the Jersey shore were just some of the settings where our lives meshed and our relationship grew. Our friendship mostly centered around laughter, being extremely goofy, and just enjoying the simplicity of our small town life. Graduation and college separated our ways somewhat, and with my family moving away from my hometown our visits became few. However, we always seemed to stay connected either through Christmas cards, our parents, or an occasional visit back to my hometown. Then came marriage, kids, and life. While we spent less time with face to face visits we did manage through the invention of social media to continue to keep in touch.

When cancer hit her life I remember distinctly the first time we spoke. I was amazed by her attitude; It was that of a hero. She was determined to fight, and just as determined to turn her suffering into praise. Her tenacity amazed me. Her willingness to live life as an open book encouraged me. She never stopped living. Ever. About 6 years ago our family moved to the Midwest and our yearly visits to the east coast allowed me the opportunity to squeeze in lunch dates each time I visited. I always left encouraged by her presence. We would exchange stories of our children, parenting struggles, and always... ALWAYS would turn our conversation to the goodness of our Lord and Savior. You'd never feel judged in her presence. She had an uncanny way of speaking truth while demonstrating the gift of both grace and mercy. I remember one time at a Cracker Barrel as we caught up on each other's lives and talked about how God was working in our individual families; she stopped me mid-conversation and touched my hand and with teary eyes said, "I just love how GOOD GOD IS... He is so GOOD to us" I feel so fortunate over the past three years to have been able to meet with her each time I visited. Being joined by our dear friend, Sarah, allowed us all three of us to share our hearts and connect as only sisters in Christ can connect. Of course, we did spend some of our time reminiscing about our childhood days and how it seemed that time was speeding up rapidly. Those lunches and times together always left me feeling so grateful to have these special friendships in my life. These past few visits, it was her spirit of thankfulness that seemed to resonate even louder to me. Physical infirmities plagued her body, yet His praises flowed quickly and easily from her lips.

This past weekend I received the news that her physical condition drastically (and what seemed like suddenly)worsened. It seems that her brave and amazing fight was coming to an end. Sunday morning, I left for church with an extremely heavy heart; waffling between being sad and being angry. The song we entered into worship with proclaimed these words, "I will enter His gates with Thanksgiving in my heart, I will enter His courts with praise. I will say this is the day that the Lord has made I WILL rejoice for He has made me GLAD!" The Lord gave me the most beautiful picture. Tricia was singing this song with a restored body and that iconic smile that always seems to adorn her sweet face. It was a beautiful image. God's peace flooded my soul. I don't want her to go, yet this image reminded me of the victory she will have in Jesus, and the restoration she will experience once she meets our Savior. When we meet again, I know she will greet me in the very same way she has over my lifetime; With her happy laugh, a heart that is turned towards our heavenly father and lips that speak of His unending praise.

Her life has made a difference. I am a better person because she was my friend.

Hilarious, Kind, Forgiving, Wise, Brave,

These are just a few words that describe my dear friend and sister in Christ, Tricia.

From the Mouth of Babes

Have you ever just had your kids say or do something that just cuts right deep to your soul? I have said since this child's conception, her purpose in my life is to be a vessel of messages, lessons, rebukes, challenges and encouragements from God. So often He speaks to me through her and this morning was no exception. I have been trying to get in the habit of praying before my feet hit the floor each morning. I have really enjoyed the slower pace of my summer schedule because it has allowed me to do this more regularly. I love not being rushed in the mornings. Lately I have really been struggling with some areas of my life. I have been fighting discouragement and finding myself losing hope for anything positive to emerge with the things I have been praying about. This morning I came to the Lord with a defeated spirit and with just shreds of hope. I asked. I pleaded. I begged for Him to please give me some kind of guidance to know what to do, say, act. ANYTHING! I actually prayed, "I am going to need you to shout it to me, Lord, because I have given up!"

I mentioned that I have enjoyed my leisurely mornings... OK well let me change that to I LOVE MY LEISURELY mornings. Ellie and I, being solo most days, have gotten into a wonderful routine of getting up, eating breakfast, and playing cards! I absolutely love it. This morning as we were playing she had a song in her head. No, she had three lines of a song in her head that kept escaping from her lips as we played each round of our game. She was singing it in a variety of tempos and a variety of voices. Anyone who knows Ellie knows that it was quite dramatic. Well she was closing one of her "singings" with the LOUD operatic version. I was about to ask her to at least lower her volume when it hit me. What she was singing over and over again... her last LOUD version... made me stop dead in my tracks. It was my answer. It was God, once again, pouring Himself through my little 11 year old vessel.

"Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord, as we wait upon the Lord. Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord, as we wait upon the Lord. Our God you reign forever Our Hope Our Strong Deliverer"

It was my answer and I will stick to it. Of course, it took me seven rounds of Phase10 to pick up on it. But that's OK because by then the lines were in my mind and I too have been singing it to myself all morning! #hcc4jesus

Books I Could Have Written.... But Didn't

Something that many may not know about me is that I have a deep down desire, a bucket list item you might say, to author a book.... some day. I don't even have a specific kind of book in mind; I just love to write. So while I haven't made the time (yet) I have decided that if I HAD written a book about this past year, it may have been one of titles below.

2014 list of Books I Could Have Written...But Didn't (and their subtitles)

1. "There's An Oil For That You Know"

Finding real solutions for rheumatoid arthritis, allergies, and more.

2. "Making Your Child Mind Without Losing Yours"

Realizing everything I thought I knew,I didn't; and other revelations of incredible proportions

3. "Pushing on a Pull Door"

Lessons God teaches me over and over and over (and over..) Will I ever learn?

4. "Unemployment Stinks"

Stretching dollars,growing my faith... One.Day.At.A.Time

5. "8 Miles Of Prayer and Praise and Problem Solving"

My daily time on Highway 2 and back home again ... then back down Highway 2... and... Well, you get the picture

6. "Letting Go But Still Holding On"

Preparing your first to fly the nest

7. "My Three Girls"

Enjoying the journey, embracing the moments, loving this time

8. "Blessed Beyond Measure"

Loving what you do and the people who make it that way

9. "Someone Stop The Ride; I Want To Get Off"

My incessant quest to find balance at home, work and life

10. "He Loves Me Still"

Twenty years and he loves me still

While you may not ever see these titles on a book stand near you or at your local Barnes and Noble they do sum up my year. God has been good, my life has been blessed, and I look forward to seeing what books I (might) write in 2015.