One thing Brian taught me is to value relationships. When I met Brian there were so many friends of his that I needed to meet. Most of these friends were lifelong friendships that started in middle school and high school. When I took inventory of my friendships not many were as long as these. It wasn't just one friend either. It was many. As his life went on the more friends he collected. Sadly, some of my strong friendships from when I was younger faded out as life changes happened. This wasn't the case with Brian. The relationships were strong. I have great friends but really learned from Brian how to foster friendships. Also after our big mountain house getaway in January 2016, Brian and I discussed how important it is to be with our people and make time for them even in the busyness of life. We wouldn't have done that trip if it weren't for cancer. Thank goodness we did because all of those collected friends did a huge friend mixing. But I am also thankful for what I learned from the experience. The value of friends. Thank you cancer for showing just how truly important friends are.
This weekend I got to go to the Traetto lake house in the middle of Alabama. Although I had been invited many times, this was the first year it was possible. So even though my move was only seven days way and life felt busy, I went. On hour six of the eight hour drive we were stuck in a LOOOOOOONNNNGGGG delay with a three year old at one in the morning. I began to question, was this worth it. Let me just tell you...the answer will always be yes.
Getting in in the wee hours of the morning doesn't give you much of an idea of where you are but when you walk out in the morning and see the view from the kitchen.
WORTH IT! It's so much more than that though. It's getting to appreciate relationships that may not have been as long as the ones Brian had but that feel equally as strong. It's the 8 hours worth of girl talk car chats. It's the meaningful conversations that happen while floating near the waterfall. It's the memory of winning the poker run charity event when you got to play with someone else's money. It's the sense of family. It is sleeping in the bunk room and waking up to see your daughter snuggling her aunts. It's your friends amazing parents spoiling your daughter with brownies and playing with her so you can have adult time on the lake. It's a group of friends where you get to be totally and utterly yourself. It's former preschool teacher Dani packing a backpack of fun that literally entertains Harper for seven straight hours while you drive. It is coming in from a day on the boat to home cooked eggplant rollatini It is a group of amazing role models for our Harper girl. It's getting to talk about Brian easily with people who loved him. It's walking into a room and the two adults are crying but your daughter is not. It's giving a pet as a gift because pets are fun and it makes your friend happy. It's riding a tube behind a boat Dani style and being reminded of amazing times with my youth group growing up. It's community. It's an investment into friendships. So the eight hours was worth it...more than worth it.
I love my framily. I am incredible thankful for them. I am also so thankful for Brian and what he taught me about relationships. His investments into people continue to multiple in our lives and I couldn't be more thankful. And like Zak said at the gravesite, in this way I will try to "live like Brian".
P.S. Happy birthday CALLY! Thanks for an amazing weekend!
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