Angels

I have long been a believer in Angels.  I firmly believe that when we need them most, they are sent to us to give comfort, aid and whatever else it may be that we need.

Now, I need to clarify something.  I do not believe in the angels with wings and halos and such.  At least, those are not the ones that help, uplift and give what we need in our most dire moments.

The Angels I am talking about are flesh and blood.  The people that come into our lives, maybe for just a short time, but leave an imprint on our hearts and souls forever.  Quite possibly, someone you meet and say, "I swear I know this person" because you feel just so comfortable with them.

Those people, they are the ones that are on my mind today.  Those friends Angels, are the ones that are lifting me up.

I often reference Emma's death when I talk about amazing things happening.  Amazing things happened, friends came to my rescue and saved me.  However, that is not the only time in my life when these Angels have been present.

The first memory I have of this was in 2nd grade.  On the first or second day of school, I met my best friend.  She and I were inseparable until we moved the summer before 6th grade.  Even after that, we stayed in contact, got together (the 6 hour drive didn't matter to us) and have seen each other off and on over the last 20  years.  She was one of the cool kids, I was not.  She made sure that I was included and invited to all of the gatherings.  She doesn't know it, but she was so very influential in who I am today.  It is because of her that I have always befriended the underdog, always tried to make everyone feel welcome, to be kind and play nice.

In High School, we moved to Utah.  On the first Sunday here, I met my soul sister.  I swear we were destined to be friends.  Annie and I were joined at the hip.  She got me.  She made me laugh (still does), loved pretending like we were from New York and were dating Christian Bale and Robert Sean Leonard (yeah, we were dorks), watching Swing Kids and Newsies with me, oh the list goes on.  She was my darling friend that moved me to Logan when I started college.  When my heart was torn to shreds our Sophomore Year in college, she made the ice cream run and let me listen to Celiene Dion, The Cure and Sarah McLaughlin ad nausem in our dorm room.  When she got married and had her first 3 children, I was there to cheer her on.  She and I have been through so much together and truly, she is still one of my very best and dearest friends.

When I decided to serve a Mission for the L.D.S. Church, I met my next fabulous friend in the MTC.  We were both loud, loved to laugh and had GREAT morning hair.  Kerri and I were two peas in a pod.  She went to Poland, I went to West Virginia.  She was an Army Brat, I was...well, not.  Shortly after she returned from her mission, she went to KU.  I moved to Kansas the next summer and the next fall moved in with her.  This is when I met Jeremy.  She taught me how to go backpacking (one of the best trips EVER), about the joy of bike riding, and to count my blessings.  Every night she would write in her journal about the highs and lows of the day.  Always focusing on the highs.  Neither of us knew that 9 years after we first met, I would be able to give her comfort as she faced the unthinkable, her infant son dying. 

So many more people, so many more stories.  These are three of the Angels I have had in my life.  I really could write all night about this.  But, there is another Angel sitting on the couch waiting for me to come snuggle with him.  My darling.  He is an Angel to me.  Despite his grief when Emma died, he stood by and picked up the pieces of me.  He listened, let me do what I needed to and never wavered in his love for me.

I ask you now, who are the Angels in your life?  Who are those people that have been most influential to you?  Have you told them recently how much they mean to you?  If not, what are you waiting for?