We've been friends for a while;
you can tell by Jor's hair and make-up
and probably her fave tee at the time.
Circa 2002, I said hi to a face in the back of a school bus. Wish I had a photo from that era- of me walking next to this chick with a bulky green coat that said "Africa" on the back. I didn't know at the time that it was the beginning of a life-long friendship; especially since she gave me the cold-shoulder for a stint because I stopped writing in our Spiderman notebook. There is Myspace hate-mail to prove it. Oh, and there was another stint because of disapproval of the dude I was dating at the time. But through the awkward 7-11 grades, I just loved this girl.
We are so different, even in size which is amazing because when we hug I fit perfectly in her bosom. Bosom chest & bosom friend. We feed off of each other. Well, she makes fun of me and then I laugh. She says I am actually the funny one- which isn't true in almost all of my friendships. But she is the one who has caused me to laugh so hard that I need to inhale by inhaler to stop the wheezing. When she laughs that hard, her tears and running mascara make me so happy.
I am so proud of her for overcoming more obstacles than I have ever experienced personally. These crappy situations of life write part of her story, but then there is the rest of the story which I am privileged to know. It is such a beautiful thing to know and be known stripped of walls and coping-mechanisms. And even after 13 years, this is all still unfolding. Oh, and I am also proud of her for winning the Nobel Peace Prize once in the game of LIFE. #goals
I am grateful that she loves my husband just as much as she loves me. I am grateful that my grandpa loves her so much that he quietly gave her the "hang loose" sign 10 rows up at church. I am grateful that she has made individual memories with my siblings and that she texts my brother in Nashville encouraging messages just because. I am grateful that she honks every time she drives by my parents house and spends time with them when I'm not there. Honestly, she sees them 10x more than she sees me in this season. They know her as I know her and consequently can't help but love her.
She remembers every inside-joke we have ever created and when I don't, I still laugh because it's funny all over again. I would bake a Brazilian 3 layer cake with her any day even if it turns out to be a disaster. I would take another 7th grade English class with her if it meant disrupting class, reading poems and making videos. I would try to stay awake until 3am but fail every time if it meant I was sleeping at her house.
But guaranteed we will continue to make new memories, and I bet they will be better, more hilarious and more truthful than the last.
Happy Birthday, Jordan.
See you tonight.