I believe #9

Happy Thing of the Day: How beautiful Wyoming is in the Summer! I love that I live here.

I believe #9! One more after this!

I believe that God puts people in your life, and takes them out for very specific reasons, and that we need to listen and understand why.

I've kind of touched on this in my posts about love and friendship, but after my post yesterday I got a wonderful message from that amazing man, and it made me think about this one a lot.  So, let's get more specific on the reasons people are in your life, shall we?

When I say "people" I literally mean any human being that enters your life.  Be it for a day or a lifetime, these people are there on purpose.  I know I go back to this point a lot, but God has a plan for you.  And this plan includes human interaction.  Some good, some not so great, some down right awful, but human interactions are unavoidable.  I truly believe, that at various points in your life, God places specific people in your path to guide you and change your heart.

These people are so vitally important to your story.  I can pick out probably 5 people (that aren't immediate family), that have vastly altered my universe, and I know that God put them in my life specifically.  Now, since I'm that nostalgic, sentimental, sappy person, I'm going to tell you about them, even though some of them you've read about before.

The Middle School Band Guy:

Yes, this is the guy from my last post, but other than the motivational umph guy, he's also been my mentor/dad #2/supporter for over half my life.  I vividly remember meeting this man.  I was a 10 year old walking in to instrument selection at MRMS, desperately wanting to play flute.  My mom did not come in with me, she dropped me off and I was sitting in a chair, surrounded by all of the shiny mouth pieces and
instruments that I couldn't begin to identify.  I was wrapped up in amazement.  When Mr. S. came in the room I remember thinking how extremely nice he was, and how comfortable he made me when I was incredible nervous.  He gave me a flute mouth piece, and somehow realized that I had asthma without ever meeting me before.   I thought he was some kind of super hero knowing that.  Realizing that flute would be incredibly hard with asthma, he gave me a clarinet mouth piece, and I was hooked.  Little did I know this man would be in my life forever.

I took Summer Band, a kind of jump start on learning your instrument before school started, and I sat right in front, next to the podium, almost every day.  Which meant I would accidentally get hit with a baton a couple of times, get very hilarious looks from the two guys waving the stick around, and inevitably, get close to both of them.  I remember going to the band room at almost every chance I had once school started, knowing it was a safe hide out from the terrors of middle school.  Our relationship took a turn for the amazing when I got ISS in 7th grade.  This was a definite mistake, and I had done nothing wrong.  I was blubbering in the ISS room desperately wanting to be anywhere else, and Mr. S. stopped in the room. The next day in band, I got pulled into the hall by this wonderful man, given a very much needed hug, and was told that he didn't know what happened, but if I needed anything he would be there for me.  And he hasn't been able to get rid of me since.  I can say with 100% certainty that without this man, I would not be here today.  He has brought me out of some of the scariest holes I have ever dug myself into, and I will be forever grateful for him being in my life.  I would never have understood how much music would mean to me, how talented I was, and how much I needed someone to remind me I was worthy without him.  I realized how much I could be loved by someone that didn't have my genetics attached to them, and it was a much needed realization.  Nice move Up There...couldn't have picked a better mentor if I tried.

The Pastor:

I will make this brief, as I already posted in depth about this wonderful man (you can read it here).  I know

for a fact that without him I would not be as firm and confident in my faith as I am.  He altered my heart in a way that is simply inexplicable.  He made my heart one that longed for love, understanding, and compassion.  I became even more of a servant with a heart to help, I grew in my ability to rely on God, and I began to let go of things, which was never easy for me.  He probably made one of the biggest impacts on my heart, and I miss him everyday, and will always remember the incredible influence and guidance I received from him.


The Lady with the Red Couch:

I post about this lady as well (GO!), but I have to give her a little credit here as well.  I would never have started the soul searching I did if I hadn't met this lady.  She was so much more than a history teacher, and though her time in my life was brief, I know that she made a hand print on my heart.  She made me look inward, acknowledged my heart for helping, and pushed me to the breaking point numerous times.  She
made me question everything, made me see the world in a different way, and probably impacted me the most in how accepting I am.  Though I can't say judgement was non-existent in her room, it was always addressed, and accepting people for who they were and where they were at became my mantra.  Thanks Ricky Bobby!

The Big Sister:

This wonderful lady has been my "big sister" since I was 14.  She is the matron of honor in my wedding, and I love her more than words can describe. In high school, I was searching for someone to love me.  It wasn't

a boyfriend, it wasn't a teacher, it was someone to love me more than a friend.  And I found Trees in the room with the red couch.  Let's preface this with the fact that this was when I felt very disconnected from my siblings.  Teenage brothers are hard to get along with when you are going through a hormonal and emotional roller coaster on a daily basis (they are two of my favorite people now though, fyi).  But, back to Trees.  I instantly felt a bond with her that I knew could never be broken.  She loved me like a sister, and I was treated, as such (still am).  I always loved that we looked like we could be sisters, and that if I needed a big sister's shoulder, I always had hers.  She and I have had such amazing conversations, such wonderful, soulful, meaningful, and unforgettable moments.

She is one of the most important people to me.  She has the ability to be ruthlessly honest, while being incredibly loving all at once.  I know that I can run away to her house at any time and be cheered up instantly with a strawberry shake and french fries.  She taught me that I can't hide from my world.  That when someone knows you to your very core, you have to let them in when life gets scary, when life gets hard, not just when it is rainbows and sunshine.  She taught me to think about what was going on in my life, and change it the way I wanted to to be changed, and not to let anyone touch my spirit. I love you big sister.

The lost friend:

I have posted about this one a few times as well.  I had this amazing friend, my best friend.  I never thought that friendship could end, and I would say it isn't completely gone, but we are not where we used to be.  This one though, this is a person that God decided I needed at least a break from.  God took my rock, my "person", if you will excuse the Grey's Anatomy reference, and made me face the big, scary world without him.  I was infuriated when that began, what will I do without my person?  And then I realized, I had other people, and that the friendship we had was beautiful and amazing, and I wouldn't go back and change that for anything.  As we have begun this journey of rekindling our lost friendship, we have both realized that who we were and who we are now are so different, and we need to accept that fact with open hearts and accept each other where we are.  I will always be grateful for the immense influence and love I have been given by my friend, and will cherish where we go from here.


God knows who needs to be your life, I know He found these incredible people for me, and I will be forever grateful for them.  He knows so much better than we do who needs to be in our lives and who doesn't, and we need to allow Him to make that choice for us.  It may be difficult, but I have seen the impact the various people in my life have made on me.  From these 5 wonderful humans, to college friends gone and graduated, high school friends off and married with babies, and people lost to death.  I have loved them all, and could not have imagined having more fantastic people to walk my journey with me.