This past weekend was a whirlwind of soul food and spirit joy. Dave and I hopped onto a jet plan to fly to Michigan to surprise my bestest friend in the whole wide world. This friend just finished one one more astounding adventure in her life–nursing school.
What makes this graduation so special is that my dear friend is not straight out of high school. She is not the traditional college student. She is not 20. She’s not single. She is a Mom, a wife, a blogger, a homemaker, a career-changer, who went back to school to live a dream instead of just dream a dream.
She is spectacular. She is courageous. She inspires me.
And just like every day since I was 14–yes that is two decades of friendship–she teaches me.
- I have learned from her to dream, to put the soul’s whisperings into loud words which weave throughout my daily life. To ignore what we want deep inside is to ignore God’s voice.
- I have learned from her to struggle to make dreams reality. Once those deep desires within become spoken, they should be pursued. Life is too short to not pursue what we really want. As Tammy loves to quote: “The glory of God is man fully alive.”
- I have learned from her to not sacrifice today’s joy for tomorrow’s illusion. Dreaming is crucial, but if it only wastes the important present of today or is used as a mere distraction or novelty, it needs to be tossed aside.
- I have learned from her to treat life as an adventure. Way back in high school, Tammy gave me a card that stressed how life is about the journey, not the destination. Along the way whom we walk with, what we discuss, the sights we see, the tastes we enjoy, the memories we make–these are nourishment for the soul. Along the way we find ourselves–and God.
I have learned from her that this delicate balance between dreaming and acting takes great risk–of which fear is the great enemy. Instead of letting fear paralyze us into a complacent, Americanized life, we must face the fear, work through it, and come out on the other side–with no regrets. Part of this risk is that sometimes dreams change, and it is OK to chase a different one on the way to a different one, on the way to another different one. 
- I have learned from her that all these beautiful traits are the very nature of God–God, the original dreamer, who struggled and risked, who acted, who invites all into an adventure of journeying with Him, towards Him.
And so, in my biggest, booming Bud Light voice:
Tammy, I salute you.
This one’s for you.
Congratulations, Tammy, RN. I am so proud of you.
You are my person, and my life is better for calling you friend.
