"In case you were curious, yes in fact I do miss you."

Malena sent me a couple quotes from Pinterest today that reminded her of the type of life we should be living. I love these words. I love when I get to have conversations with my girls about making this happen, choosing to surround ourselves with these types of people because we recognize it ultimately impacts who we become.

I started my day with breakfast with Mikaela and Katy, two of my freshmen Young Life girls. These are the types of girls I would have wanted to be friends with in High School. I love that they are silly and wise beyond their years and that they want to do fun things and encourage each other and be kind to everyone and not sweat the small stuff. 

We ended up just sitting and talking in my car for so long about friendships and how people can change and sometimes that's just so hard and so sad to see happen right in front of your eyes. I pray that these girls will be able to hold onto the confidence to be who God uniquely made them to be. They inspire me and give me hope.

I had lunch across town with Kraft, Evan and Shelby-- three old camp friends. I love that we all have so much shared history and can just pick right back up. I'm thankful for spontaneous reunions like this that always seem to happen over Christmas Break. Getting back together with friends like this is one of my favorite things.

I was so excited to get to hang out with Kate, another YL girl, this afternoon. She was in my cabin this past summer at Timber Wolf and I love when we get to chat just the two of us. Kate is so smart and witty and inquisitive and has one of the best memories of club talks I've ever seen. I'm thankful for how vulnerable she is and proud of her for going with her gut. HS has brought a lot of changes for her and I'm so curious to see how she'll keep growing and changing in the new year.

I met up with Courtney, Amanda and Sar for dinner (yes, I know, it seems like all I did today was eat). These camp girls are so full of spunk. I loved realizing that Amanda and Court might be twins, finding two fortunes in my cookie, talking about camp husbands, laughing about old stories and discussing this winter blizzard.

Malena sent me this definition of "sobremesa" too and it seemed so perfect for my day. I sat with these girls after we finished our food, even after our plates had been cleared, and after we'd given away cupcakes. We just didn't want to leave. Talking together and savoring friendship is the best.

The grand finale to this friend day was spent hanging out with Emily and Molly Brunner. We talked about how we're not quite sure why camp friendships tend to outlast both HS and college friendships but they just do.

Maybe it's because we talk about the culture of camp right at the beginning of each summer--about friendship and encouragement and trust and faith. Maybe it's because what we've shared there is so unique and creates this pretty amazing bond. Maybe it's because when we sing the words "Welcome to the Family" we really mean that this is a family. Maybe it's because camp people are a rare breed and we're just so lucky we all found each other in Brookston, IN. Maybe it's because camp is such an intricate part of each of us individually we need to stay connected to people who understand that. Maybe it's all of those things. But I do know for sure that Emily and Molly are two of my favorite people and I plan on overlapping with them for years to come.