Bosom Friends

Anne Shirley, from “Anne of Green Gables,” desired a bosom friend, as she called it. Someone who shared the same interests and attitudes similar to her own. She had been an orphan and had never known the meaning of true friendship. That is until she met Diana Berry, who became her very best friend for life.

I cannot think of anything more refreshing than a friend that can read your thoughts before you say them. Someone who knows your winks, stares, sideways glances, and throat clears; Someone who you can call and even though utter chaos is on the other end of the phone line, you are able to say, “I know now isn’t a good time, but I just have to unload.”

My sister and I could not fit this description more. We are as different as night and day, but instead of trampling upon each other’s differences, we have learned to give each other room and embrace those things we have in common, which are many.

Growing up, I was “Miss Prissy” and Brittney was a “Tom Boy.” If my shoes got a little muddy, I cried. Yet, Brittney would be in the backyard making herself into a full-bodied human mud pie! I was always easy for Mother to clean up, but my sister, on the other hand, required lots of elbow grease! She wasn’t afraid of anything and was a perfect tag along for my dad during his horse breaking years.

No matter how different we were as kids, when the lights went out, we would crawl into each other’s bed and drift off to sleep giggling.

We are still giggling together as grown-ups, yet we live very differently. I live my life by a detailed plan and a fully loaded timed schedule. In picture form, I’m in a kayak racing down the river, dodging sharp rocks, rapids, and waterfalls. My sister, no matter the occasion, just an ordinary day or hosting a party for forty-five, manages an uninterrupted leisure float down a lazy river, with an iced-lemonade in hand. NOTHING ruffles her feathers.

Brittney, is one of the funniest people you will ever be around. It is nothing that she tries to do, it never draws a crowd, and it is only enjoyed by those who know her best.

I remember one day, a few years back, I got trapped in an extremely awkward conversation with a stranger explaining to me how they “Bird Fed” each one of their children when they were babies. My eyes were like saucers, and I stared dumbfounded at how my courteous “Hello” could have gotten me into this awkward conversation. I figured it was because I was holding my infant at the time. Unbeknownst to me, my sister was within earshot of this conversation. Instead of walking in to save me, she sends me a text message. It read, “I’m crying laughing right now.” I knew she had decided it was more entertaining to watch me weasel out of this conversation than for her to run to my rescue! We have shared many laughs over that strange encounter.

My sister is the type of person that prefers to do things behind the scenes to help people. She is the type of friend that will do that which is least expected to be a blessing in someone’s life.

During the first few weeks after we brought Eva home from the hospital, it was extremely trying. Chuck had gone back to work, and I was left at home staring at a screaming baby who loved to be held. It did not matter what was going on or what needed to be done. As long as I held her, she was, for the most part, perfectly fine.

Every time she would drift off to sleep in my arms, I would sit down with her and let out a sigh of relief, only to realize my book or the remote was just out of reach. So, there I would be, stuck staring out the window, too afraid to move.

There is a learning curve with a new baby. It’s like sand paper pressing against our selfishness. Little ones will create in us the ability to be our best self by stripping off the worst of us.

One such “Sandpaper” day, I was beyond frustrated. Out of the blue, my sister called. Her husband and she have a little boy just one year older than Eva, Benjamin James. So, she could pretty much guess what my pressure gauge was reading.

I was in the middle of changing Eva’s diaper for what seemed like the fiftieth time that day, and well…I was just mad; Covered in spit up, burp cloths draped over my shoulder, and unable to finish anything I started, left me feeling helpless.

Shortly after hanging up the phone with her, I heard the doorbell ring. When I opened the door, there my sister stood with her arms stretched out.

All she said was, “Give her to me.” With tears in my eyes, Brittney took Eva from me. She stripped her down to her diaper, wrapped a cool blanket loosely around her, and sat down with her. Eva was asleep in seconds.

Then she looked at me and told me to go do whatever I needed to do. I went and cleaned the garage (completely normal for me). After I finally completed something that would last longer than thirty minutes, I took a hot shower.

Honestly, there was no real physical rest for me that day or the days to follow. Eva was still going to need me in a few hours, but the peace that flooded my mind changed my outlook. I was able to catch my breath and find the strength I needed to press on. God’s strength is made perfect in weakness.

I will never forget my sister’s kindness to me that day—a simple act of selflessness that gave me reassurance.

Even though God could rain down blessings from heaven upon us, He doesn’t. He sees the value in using people. He sees the value of bosom friends.

I kind of feel like Winnie the Pooh when he wrote about his dear friend Piglet, “It seems they always had been and always would be friends. Time could change much, but not that.”

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“A friend loves at all times….” Proverbs 17:17

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