On the Tenderness of Friendship

How does anyone make their way across thousands of miles of terrain, new continents, and different languages in one piece? I don’t know if I’ve done it in one piece, but I do know it would have been impossible without the steadfast love of friends and family.

For those of you who read my blog on a fairly consistent basis, you will know that I’ve been strangely silent – for many months. I blamed it on writing my novel, then moving back to Seattle, and then the pressures of transition – which are all a part of the truth and none of it answers the whole. Honestly, I’ve gone underground, and let my roots draw deep into the dark earth. I’ve needed to grow quiet and listen to my heart, and tune my ear to God’s gentle whispers. He doesn’t shout, does he?

My kids went off to school today, I started a new job, made a menu for tonight’s dinner, (I’m making tacos) and came upstairs to my room where my computer is and thought … I so desperately want to write a blog post. So here I am at the keyboard, putting words to what’s inside.

This is part of what’s inside… Friendship is the most beautiful thing I know right now. Its tender fruit has fed and nourished me in such reliable ways these past few months. It was with gorgeous and overflowing friendship that I somehow got up and made it out of Chile and said good-bye to a beautiful land, a culture I had grown to love, and a language that holds significant pieces of my story. And it was friendship that ushered me home to Seattle – picked me up at the airport, brought me Starbucks coffee, loved on my children, loaned me cars, sat with me during long hours where I cried and shared, and swore like a true Osterhouse. It was friendship that offered me a place to live, gave me job referrals, and genuinely took me in just as I am, which I am convinced is the greatest gift we could ever give anyone.

Authentic friendship gives courage and makes us brave, it speaks truth, and knows when to be silent. It knows when to pour another glass of wine, and when to come over with new clothes for a job interview. Friendship knows how to hear confession, and how to be God’s voice of absolution and also of gracious rebuke. It hopes on our behalf, it believes on our behalf, and it understands, without a demand for explanations, when it is time to accept loss and bow our heads in silent acquiescence.

When I moved to Chile three years ago, it was the loneliest time I have ever known, but slowly as I made friends and found kindred spirits, (They are everywhere.) loneliness ebbed and new people made their way into the fabric of my life. When I arrived back in Seattle, I wondered if I would feel that empty barrenness again. I haven’t. There is too much history of love and acceptance here, and even though my heart is tired, I’m home.

Three years ago, Fragments started out as a blog searching for truth, documenting significant findings, and sharing my thoughts in a real and authentic way. It certainly isn’t anything new or startling that I value my friends … but for what it’s worth – the fragments of my life are made up in great part of all you and you make my life good and rich and bring meaning to it, in every season … I love you all.

Eucharisteo,

Tina