Admirable Friends

Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls. The most massive characters are seared with scars. There is a sacredness in tears. They are not a sign of weakness, but of power. They are messengers of overwhelming grief and unspeakable love.
I have been through my own personal hell since I was 15 years old. Life was never really easy for me. My childhood was great. I grew up in a small town where everyone knows your name and they smile and wave whenever you pass them on the street. I miss my hometown. It is a very small place and it is filled with good people. There aren't a lot of tragedies in the town I grew up in. No murders, rapes, missing children. We could play in our yards and walk home from school and not worry about someone taking us. When I was 15 we moved to Indianapolis and that is when things changed. I will admit, I was naive to the actual world. Where I had grown up, it was not the real world. It was more of a novel. It was perfect. Indianapolis is where life took a drastic turn. I hated living there... no one really knew me. I made some good friends, but it wasn't the same. I went from having a class of 42, to a class of 988. BIG CHANGE. Anyways, I won't go into details of how my life was, but it wasn't easy. The only good that came from that city is my husband and my daughters. This is why I am picky when it comes to my friends. I am not saying that I am only friends with people who have had a hard life, but, it is easier to talk to people who understand, in a way, of why you are who you are. I think that this is why being a Marine Wife isn't all that hard for me. I am use to being 'Semper Gumby'. I have met some wives that have had it hard as well. There is one friend, who has just recently went through hell. The things she is going through is something I don't think I could do. Her husband was taken from her March 14 2010 in Afghanistan. I don't like to say lost... she didn't misplace him. I have never cared for that term, She lost her husband. He was taken from her. No other way to put it. I have been with her every step of the way. Don't plan on that changing. Not in the least bit. Although her life has taken a drastic shift for the worse, she is keeping her head up. She hasn't let this change her. Yes, she has her moments, but that is what makes her so strong. She lives her life the best that she can, and to be frank, she is doing a damn good job. I feel that people don't realize what they say in front of her, but that is a flaw in the human persona. We never really do realize what we do or say until it's too late. I see her eyes light up when she hears us talk about our husbands coming home. I have had to learn that she is still my friend, and that she wants to know about my husband. There for a while, I didn't want to talk to her about my husband and my fears. I didn't think that I had a right to complain to her, of all people. But, I know now that she wants to hear about these things. I just make sure that she is the one who brings  it up. She is still an amazing friend to all of us. I am so thankful to have her in my life. If it wasn't for my husband and her husband (Brad and Jonny) being friends at their MOS School I wouldn't have been blessed enough to know her and to be called her friend. She has showed me what it is to be strong. But I think I have mislead you, she's not my friend.... she's my sister.
My other friend, well, we are a lot alike. I have known her since the 7th grade. We were best friends from the get go. We look and talk just a like. Scary thing is... are baby pictures are identical. haha. She hasn't had it easy either. But her hardships came a little later in her life as well. She met an amazing man and (even though they had their ups and downs like all do) they are great together. They finally decided to try to have a baby. It wasn't too long after they started trying before she got pregnant. I was so happy for her. 5 weeks later she miscarried. This happened two more times. Her last miscarriage tore her apart. She was 4 months pregnant and she was told by the doctor to wait it out. They made her wait to miscarry her baby. It was horrible. It broke my heart. To have one miscarriage is hard.. but 3? I couldn't do it. After the third miscarriage she got pregnant again. The doctors tried to tell her that she would miscarry again she refused to believe them. She was told that she wouldn't be able to have children. But, I can now safely say that at a lil over a month old... their daughter is beautiful and healthy.
I don't know why certain things happen to certain people, like my friend whose baby boy died after a mere 4 hours. And they still don't know what went wrong. But I do like to think that everything happens for a reason. I just am not sure if I want to know that reason. My Nana always told me that hardships from the past are lessons for the future. I never really understood what that meant until a few years ago. My Nana is so full of knowledge and I try to take it all in. For when she passes, that chance to learn all of that knowledge is gone. It will be up to me to pass it on to my children. She is another person who is extra strong. She took me in and took care of me since I was 6 years old. It was hard on her because of her ailments... but she did it anyways. She is also a survivor of melanoma skin cancer. She is amazing. I could go on and on about my friends and my Nana... but to be frank.. I could write a novel. So on that note I will go. I just wanted to share a few special people in my life who have amazed me.