mentor & protege

Blessed. I know that Heavenly Father truly loves me, and because of that He will compensate for my failures.

Roughly a year ago, maybe longer, I felt "impressed" to reconnect with a friend that I hadn't seen in probably a decade. We've been friends for 23 years, and have kept in touch via Christmas cards and an occasional email, but even though she lives only 20 minutes away we have not seen each other in 10 years. How sad! How even more sad that I failed to follow my impression to reconnect last year. I was prideful, worried that I might be infringing on her time and scared of rejection to a point. Clearly Heavenly Father decided that I was too thick-headed and that he needed to work through a different vessel, my friend, Laureen, in order to get us together. And thankfully she followed through with His promptings.




Last night we finally got together and had a 3 hour dinner (that included yummy fried green tomatoes). If you are ever lucky enough to have a true friend; the kind that tells you how it is--that you've got your skirt tucked into your pantyhose--hold them close. And you will also understand the great joy I felt at our reunion. We sat and talked (I hardly ate my meal) and laughed and cried the entire time. Gratefully I was able to tell her how much she's meant to me over the years; how she saved me in my youth (she was my Young Women's Laurel advisor), and guided me and encouraged me in a way no body else did. She paid me the most incredible compliments I could ever ask for, gushed about my mothering skills, the spirit felt in my home and said how it's been her honor to know me. Talk about an ego boost!

Through our conversation we found that we continue to have much in common and have arrived at somewhat the same place in life, with regards to our marriages, emotional growth and understanding of the gospel. We talked about books that have changed our lives (hint: Bonds that Make us Free, by C. Terry Warner), leaders that have inspired us, the difference between kind and nice and also unloaded some baggage in our process to catch up. Laureen is freakishly smart, quick and has a wicked sense of humor. I love her to pieces! I have a feeling of why we were meant to reconnect at this time in our lives, but time will tell. I'm so thankful for this friendship in my life and I'm so grateful that Heavenly Father loves us enough to not give up on us even when we're stupid.