I’ve pretty much had two best friends since I was 19. We’ve spent countless hours together playing Monopoly, hanging out in Vegas and watching sports together. We’ve also had countless conversations about life, girls, family, children and God. I’m lucky to have not only one friendship like that, but two. As lucky as I’ve been to have those friends from 17 years, though, I’ve had another best friend for even longer.
My sister, Stacey, has been my best friend since the day I was born. She was four years old when I was born and she has been a constant presence in my life. There are pictures of her holding me as a baby and the both of us smiling and hugging each other when I was a toddler. Obviously our friendship took a hit when we got older and fought over the bathroom and the computer, but nothing to the point of actual animosity. We were brother and sister, we fought like brother and sister, but we were always best friends.
Ever since we both reached adulthood and stopped living under the same roof, I can’t remember a time when we’ve even been angry with each other. We hung out all the time before she got married. Stacey and her husband lived in Texas when Alycia and I started dating; I thought Alycia was something special but couldn’t fully commit to Alycia until she had a chance to meet Stacey. After we were both married, we continued to hang out even as the both of us had kids. We’ve gone through literally every phase of life together and continue to love each other and spend time together.
Spending time together with my best friend will be a little more difficult now. As I wrote about earlier this year, she and her family are moving to Boston. I can totally see God’s hand in their moving, but it doesn’t make it suck any less. We said our goodbyes on Monday night and I held it together just long enough to give my nieces the biggest hugs I could muster. Once Alycia and I got in the car, I started crying, the ugly kind of cry when your face looks like a Picasso painting.
Obviously we’ll stay connected through social media and FaceTime. Stacey is so faithful in reading my posts and listening to my podcast that she knows what’s going on in my life before I can tell her. I’m sure we’ll see each other on holidays and I’ll learn how to navigate Logan International Airport. However, a best friend a five-hour flight away isn’t the same as a best friend 5 minutes away.
That being said, 3,000 miles can’t do anything to touch 37 years. My sister has been my best friend since I was born and a job in Boston can’t do anything about that.
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