Reflections

I had the nicest time at dinner last night. My best friend from childhood and high school met with me a local restaurant. After 30 plus years we find ourselves back in the same town, same basic circumstances and much wiser than we were growing up.

A little background. Friend is 20 days older than me. We grew up in the same country church.
Our grandmothers were best friends and lived by each other for a period of time. My Parental Unit is several years older than Friend's, but they still all grew up together, too.

We both married high school sweethearts within 6 months of each other. Of course she was in my wedding and I was in her wedding.

Jobs, careers, and life took us down different paths for several years. We've lived far apart and have been busy rearing children, being wives, working and all the other stuff that makes up a person's life.

Now, here we are, finding out that we have come kind of full circle and, well, here we are.

Friend is a first grade teacher......Beachy Mimi was a first grade teacher until early retirement.
Friend is divorced after 30+ years of marriage. You all know Beachy Mimi's voyage down that path.

I wouldn't say we were "chummy" now, but it is nice to visit with someone who knows you to your "core" and was watching and walking along side you as your values and beliefs were being formed and tested.

I am really getting to a point. Be patient!

Dinner was basically a "life review" and was pretty sweet and sometimes sad.

The one thing we have both discovered......all our disappointments, yearning for things or opportunities that never came, wishes, pleadings and desires that never seemed to come true.

God was there the whole time...PROTECTING US.

All those instances and opportunities we felt so immediate and important. All those times things didn't go quite the way we thought they should. Times when we thought "Where are you, God?". HE was there alright. Protecting us from the consequences that we couldn't see
from our viewpoint of life at that time.

Wow! I can remember being so upset/disappointed about things I thought were failures that were actually victories. Maturity has helped me to see that...finally.

My point is, I am BLESSED. You are BLESSED. What we sometimes think is "Hey that's not fair. I deserved that________________." That disappointment is God protecting you from the repercussions down the road...troubles from choices we make without all the information.

Even now there are things in life I just don't understand. I have a tendency to crawl under the bed, fetal position sucking my thumb and whining "Why?????"

Instead, I'm going with the approach of "Thank you, Lord, for saving me from myself and my choices, and even desires I may have that are not right for me."

That, Peeps, is a full time job!!