When I was little, I had a best friend named Beth. She is now known as “Beth from Alabama”, but that is another story. Beth was everything I wasn’t. I was giggly; Beth was poised. I was clumsy; Beth was graceful. I was gangly; Beth was beautiful with long dark hair and big dark eyes. She taught me the words to “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” in sign language. That skill has not stuck with me in this present age, but I appreciate the attempt.
When I was a teenager, Diana was my best friend. We had our own little inter-religious love triangle going. I liked Matthew, the Mormon. Matthew liked Diana, the Catholic. Diana didn’t like anyone. Still, Matthew aside, we got along well. She taught me how to draw cute little smiley faces and how to pretend to cheer for the softball team my dad coached. I’m still not a sports minded person, but still…she tried.
In college, there were Robin and Natalie. Robin would walk around campus with me a couple days before classes started so I could orient myself and not get lost. Natalie would call me crazy for thinking that Rhett should have married Melanie but agreed that -Gone With the Wind- was the best book ever. We had other people drifting in and out of our atmosphere, but for the most part we stuck together.
And then came Jennifer. We kind of happened by accident. I was bored one night. Kenny and I were living and working in one town and going to church in another. I didn’t really have many friends and Kenny was gone a lot. So, I called up some girls and we began watching movies together. Then, one night Kenny was in a social mood and we invited a couple of couples over, Jennifer and Ben among them. It didn’t happen overnight, but a few years later Ben became Kenny’s best friend and Jennifer became mine.
She took me to see -Hairspray- because Kenny didn’t want to. She substitute taught in my Mission Friends classes at the last minute. She suffered through endless “should I or shouldn’t I cut my hair?” discussions when she knew I didn’t really want an answer, just an idea to toy with. She drove my mother and me to St. Louis to see -Wicked- and put up with me singing “Taylor the Latte Boy” just because I love Kristin so much. She made me French Toast and Pinwheels when I was craving them and put up with the five cats despite her allergies.
And this week, she drove off to Florida, the land of Sunshine and Alligators.
Kenny says it will be okay. We still have work and church and the three cutest nieces anywhere. And it will. Be okay, I mean. But it will be okay without Jennifer. She won’t be here when -Mama Mia!- comes out. She won’t be here to make good on her threat to put my first child in the nursery from the first Sunday they come to church. She won’t be here to translate when my mouth runs away with my brain. And now I have no one to sing “Taylor” with.
God sure knew what He was doing when he created best friends. I just wish it weren’t so heartbreaking to lose them.