My Amy.
I met Amy when I was in middle school. She was dating/or going to date my brother and I loved her spirit from the beginning. One of my first memories was her brother's funeral. I never met him personally but I went to support Amy and her family. I sat in the very back row of a huge church I have never been to and listened to these amazing stories of this young man's life. And like I said even though I have never met him, I felt a loss of what I was going to be missing when our siblings dated. At the time I did not know how much of an impact Amy and her family would have on my life. I think back even know and wonder what type of relationship we might of had when we saw our siblings off to prom, heard about their collective break-up and watch them grow from award ex's into friends (with their spouses along side).
My next clear memory of Amy is when I was in eighth grade and she invited me to a high school youth group event. I felt so cool hanging with high schoolers. We went up to the mountain and went inner tubing, at the time it was just a really fun trip but it ended up being the moment my life took a huge turn down a path that would shape my friendships, faith and life.
During Amy and Chas' relationship she invited us to her church. The same church I went to her brother's funeral at. I loved it from the first minute I was there. When Chas and I were growing up, we went to church pretty irregularly. Always on Easter and Christmas and them for a few sperts here and there. I was younger and was more interested in the social aspects of it, who could blame a ten year old. I knew of God and of Jesus and I certainly believed in them but that was about the depth of my relationship with them. When we started going to Amy's church, I found my personal relationship with God. I remember loving the feeling of sitting there in church and the pastor would tell a inside joke of one of the church members and the whole congregation would laugh because they understood the joke as well. It was like one big family, and I was slowly becoming a part of that as well. My parents joined us once in a while but not as regular as Chas and I went. I was ok with that, because this was a decision I made on my own and not because I had a parent pulling me out of bed every Sunday morning. One of the bests parts of my new church was I was surrounded by friends who didn't push me to party on weekends but who joined me for Sunday school and Wednesday night youth group. And Amy was right there for all of it. It wasn't just inside church that I was with these friends it was outside of it as well. We went to prom, sleep overs, movie nights, weekend youth trips, so many memories! Amy introduced me to another love of mine: scrap booking.
As these things happen Chas and Amy broke up and they both moved on to their soul mates (interestingly enough it was some ex's of their soul mates own.. i meant "confusingly enough") but we remained close. She was there for me during many confusing relationships and break ups. If I called her to complain about my parents or cry about being lonely she would come over and just simply listen or give me advice. We would hang out in her room and listen to music(Angel of Mine), movies(I've got purple slushy in my ear) and talk for hours. I remember one time we both had the same exact white shoes, and we were handing out in her bed room laying on the floor and she had her feet in the air behind her. I looked at her shoe and said, "I have that same writing on the bottom of my shoe!" and she looked at mine and recognized something else and then we looked at each other and started laughing. We have been wearing the other's shoes for two weeks and didn't even notice. And we don't even have the same size! Our families have also been included in this friendship. Amy is loved like a daughter to my parents; being around for important moments and sharing in trials. Her parents have been such an encouragement to me, whether they know it or not. I have watched them from afar with their glowing love for Christ and the people that surrounded them. They have recently did our pre-martial counseling for Aaron and I and prayed over our communion at our wedding in December. Our families have been interlocking for ten years now and love them like they are just an extension of my family.
As we grew older the experiences we shared have changed but the connection we share has not. We have celebrated high school graduations, college graduations, engagements, watched close friends get married, been bridesmaid's in each other's weddings, and now I am watching her bloom into a mother.
I hope she knows the influence she has had on my life and my faith. Friends may come and go but sisters are forever.
I love you Amy.
