Friends Are Friends Forever

"Think where man's glory most begins and ends,
And say my glory was I had such friends." - William Yeats 

Having lived my life these past fourteen years in one town, one house, and one job, relationships run deep, multiplying with the passing of time. I have been so blessed. I'm thinking about my former staff, pastor friends, golf partners, basketball buddies, and a church full of brothers and sisters, missing them all and missing them all at once. Too many goodbyes. I feel diminished somehow, like a big piece of my life is missing, leaving a gaping hole that needs filling in. And hopefully that's what happens and is already happening for me.

Every friend I leave behind takes with them a little piece of my heart. This is the bane that comes with the blessing, no way around it. But on the positive side, with every new friendship I find, something wonderful is added to me, filling in the void. Close friends can never really be replaced or replicated, we all know that. Yet, new friends ease the pain of our goodbyes and help us embrace the future with hopeful anticipation. 

So, these first few weeks and months in Virginia are all about missing and meeting, losing and gaining, grieving and celebrating. It's all about relationships - those we reluctantly leave behind and those we enthusiastically embrace. It's all good. It's all God's purpose and plan. And best of all, it's all temporary. Friends are friends forever.