The Beauty of Grace.

“The greatest happiness in life is the conviction that we are loved- loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves.” –Victor Hugo

Many of us will look back on our lives and agree with the idea that the friendships that hurt us the most molded us into the people we are today. I have loved and lost, and I’m not just talking about relationships- I’m talking about friendships. I believe that losing a friend is the greatest loss of all losses because it’s as if you (or the other person) decided at one point in each other's lives that you or they were no longer valuable enough to keep. Therefore, you or they decided it was best to let go altogether.
But friendships are not about what you get, it’s about what you give; the bond of commitment you extend to the other person. You see, in the end, you don’t hold your commitments; your commitments hold you. The commitments we make are like magnets: they pull us toward each other. In friendship, commitments means being there for someone even when it’s NOT convenient. Granted, sometimes the other person can be hard to love, but love them intentionally (regardless of the way they might have treated you in the past or present). Your reaction is their lifeline back to grace and goodness.
As many of you know, a couple of my friends have created a bucket list that is numbered to however old we will be turning. So for me, I will be turning the big “2-5” this June and I have 25 small (but great!) plans to still accomplish till then. One of the significant goals on my list was to “repair a past relationship (#24).” When I initially scripted these words, I did not have anyone in mind because I felt that in my past, I have severed more relationships/ friendships than I was able to create. So here I was with the daunting question of, “where do I start? Who do I start with?” It was actually very overwhelming, seeing as I’m a very passive soul and I cry at the thought of confrontation (I really do). But God knew.
So a month after I made my list, a situation arose where I had to front an “ex-friend/acquaintance” about a life style that was hazardous to be around. I consulted friends and family about what I should do and more often than not, their reaction was, “drop her like its hot.” (No, seriously, that’s what they said). But ONE person challenged me to love her HARD- pray for patience but continue to stand by her. So I did. Long story short, a few weeks later she came to me not quite apologizing but confessed that “losing you [me] once was hard enough, I don’t want to lose you [yours truly] again.” Mind you, this was while I was completing #18: “Run a marathon” so if I wasn’t out of breathe by then, I was now. But see what I’m saying? It might take a couple of years for forgiveness and redemption to sink in, but IT. WILL. COME. I guarantee that. Shoot, I CHALLENGE you to test me. YEAH. “Come at me, brah!” [lol! Thanks Dan.] That’s right. I dare you- wait. I DOUBLE, dog, dare you. Shoot! I “WWJD” you!

So take this is my declaration of commitment. You extend your hand, I'll super glue it to mine. If that's something you don't want, I advise you not to give me high fives.

Life is too short to go on bitterly and fearfully. I have come a looooooooooonnng ass way and I am looking forward to the road ahead. In repairing the old, I’ve also been blessed to acquire new friends too! These people make up a third of who I am today. I love them with all my ventricles and other cardiac muscles and more.
So here’s to you, my old and new friends- I owe you my life, my happiness and my redeeming future. Happy President’s Day!!