What made her so special?

This week marks the anniversary of the home going of my best friend Jan. Every year at this time I reflect on what a great gift that she was to me, and how she enriched my life. What made her so special? She was real, unpretentious, caring, sacrificially giving, she was available, a great listener.........she was so like Jesus. She helped to mentor me when I was a young pastor's wife by showing me how to love the people in my church and help to encourage them in their walks with the Lord.

A few weeks before Jan was tragically taken from us, we were talking in to the wee hours of the morning while laying in her girls' bunk beds and she was sharing how incredibly blessed she was. Jan was blessed with 4 children, 2 handsome boys and then 2 little girls after she turned 40....... (I would have freaked to have a baby after 40). Not her, she was telling me how blessed she was that she had these 2 little girls to love and share her life with (the boys were already married), most people have an empty nest when they are my age.........and she still had the giggles in her house. When Jan talked about her kids, her eyes would disappear as the smile lit up her face. Jan never failed to give Thanks for all that the Lord had done for her. (How many times do we forget to thank Him?)

While we talked and laughed that December night, our girls were in the other room laughing and making memories of their own. Our husbands had long before retired to the recliners and were snoring loudly, ...........little did I know that what a great memory gift that night would turn out to be. I hit rewind in my mind and play that night over and over again. What a GREAT memory that I have gotten to share through the year with her girls and remind them of how loved they were and are. All 4 of Jan's kids have grown to be amazing adults.

Paul (Jan's husband) remarried a wonderful lady (Ann) who loved and raised Jan's precious little blond girls as her own. This past July, I attended Tiffany's wedding, what a moving day and what a proud day for both of Tiffany's moms; Ann took such loving care of all the details to make sure her daughter had a beautiful wedding and I am sure had we been able to see Jan's face her pride would be evident by the squint of her eyes due to the huge smile on her face.

I was blessed after Christmas with a visit from Tiffany who came to spend the day with me. We laughed and made memories while drinking out of the same blue cups that Jan and I use to drink Diet Coke out of. Jan and I use to solve all the problems of the world and the church while drinking out of those cups. Jan would be proud to know that our baby girls (Tiffany and Bethany, Sarah and Tara) get together as much as possible to make their own memories. They too are Life Long Friends and know that their friendship is worth the time and sacrifice.

What made her so special? She was just so easy to love. I want to be easy to love too.