a rose by any other name...

The rose I am referring to is my friend - Angela Rose Snow.
She is my oldest friend, I have more history with her than any other friend and it is something, she is someone, I treasure.

Yesterday on my way home from Ft. Collins I talked to my high school friend and as usual it was a gift to my soul. As our conversation drew to a close I began to think back on the early days of our un-likely friendship, our God-ordained friendship.

I was a sheltered, looking to please at almost any cost (even people I didn't know - like someone pumping gas next to me at the gas station), goody-goody in 12th grade. She was a wild, loud, mad at most people 11th grader. Our common interest was athletics. It was my second year at Lake Mary High School. My first year there she was on the JV volleyball team and I was on varsity - so we didn't interact or really even know of each other except by name and of course I knew of her reputation and big mouth. Also, amazingly, when I was in 11th, she in 10th, we played softball on the same team, but we didn't know each other at all. Probably because she was so much more talented than I was and she didn't have time for the less amazing! By the way, I know she will read this and laugh OUT LOUD along with me.

I cannot even remember how we first became aquainted because it seems like we were just always close. It happened in an instant - probably on the court at some point. Maybe we thought we couldn't go wrong with each other because we were so different. I think at first in my arrogance and immaturity I saw her as a "ministry", but I was in for more ministering from her than I have ever been for her. And this is true to this day.

We have laughed until we cried on more occasions than I can remember - especially in those days of youthful bliss when all the world seems at your beck and call. We didn't want much - just to be amazing at something or maybe more truthfully to someone. We had funny double dates and crazy nights out and somehow through all of that we became sisters of the heart.

Honestly, once we both went off to college we stayed connected but our hearts drifted. I think this happened because I spent a lot of years judging her. We were each finding our way to a genuine relationship with God, but our pathways looked vastly different. I wounded her in ways I could cry about even now, but by God's grace and a whole bunch of hers, we made it through those days and on to these times of a deep soul-ish bond.

That was 16 years ago.
We are connected forever, I am certain of it.
My only hope is that we might someday share the same locality and I dream with God of future ministry together.

I love you friend.