Meet Lizzy. Free spirit, total hippie, huge heart and outrageously artistic. I have fond memories of us hosting tea parties for our stuffed animals, creating motes in the forest after a hard rain and drawing maps that led to secret treasure. X marked the spot – the spot being my house where my mother’s hot chocolate awaited us. r
A few nights ago, I called my dear old friend hoping she wasn't busy belting it out on stage and drumming her guitar somewhere. After three rings, she answered with a joyous hello, how are you? Lizzy and I were pretty much inseparable in our youth but our paths took us to different colleges, new endeavors, and now we’re each settled in different states. She’s in North Carolina making it big as a musician, and I’m obviously in Maryland working at the magazine and planning my wedding. Lizzy and I keep looser touch than we like so it was a real treat catching up on the phone. Her excitement about Roger and me being engaged was contagious. I couldn’t hold it in any longer.
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“Will you be my idesmaid?”
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Before I finished getting the words out, she had already accepted my request. Now, that I was confident that she would stand by me on the altar next September, I wanted to turn the conversation towards her. I'd missed what she had been up to the past few months. I pleaded for details, but Lizzy insisted that I tell her more. She wanted to know what colors I was thinking, what dress designs I'm considering, and where, when, how and who ultimately make up my big day. I painted her a picture of what the day would look like and to that she exclaimed, “I'm going to send you some images I found to jog your mind when it comes to wedding dresses and decorations for the reception.” Quietly, I thought, how nice of her. I know she's busy booking 150 gigs a year, all I want is for her to be there on my special day.
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Well, then came Monday after a long Thanksgiving eak. I had a mountain of emails to climb through and an equal amount of phone messages to check. Right around lunchtime, my roommate/Maid of Honor (don't worry, she'll be introduced soon enough!), she texted me to see if I'd checked Pinterest lately. Surprisingly, I had not. To my astonishment, Lizzy had started a board and titled it "Alex in Weddingland!" I was touched. And even though Thanksgiving has passed, I want to end with how thankful I am for my friends. Months can pass and I don't have the luxury of quality time to catch up, but when I finally do, it's as if it were yesterday when we last spoke.
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For anyone that's reading this, take a moment to call an old friend or send them a note in the mail letting them know how much they are appreciated. Friendship is everything and it's not just moments like a wedding that should remind us of why we love our friends.
