Tuesday 16th September 2008

Tonight I miss my friends....not to say that I don't miss them every single day, but tonight the pain is worse and I would love to know that I was meeting the Bratz for coffee and muffins at the Beat in the morning and Vix for tea in the afternoon, followed by a braai on the deck at the Dolloways and a nice long Sunday morning with Mary.

Friends truly are the backbone of life and are definitely the family that you get to choose and given the opportunity to do it all over again I would choose to surround myself with exactly the same people....people that I can laugh and cry with and who are used to my quirky ways and just love me absolutely for who I am. I read a poem once about friendship and how each friend fills a different and equally special role in our lives and how God sends them to us at exactly the right moment.....well my special friends this is to you.

Beryldene, you are my soul sister and my person, the one I can solve the problems of the world with and who knows what I am thinking even before I do.....your presence in my life has been for a relatively short time, but the impact has been far reaching and more inspirational then you could ever imagine, your drive and determination never ceases to amaze me and your dedication as a mother is a source of awe every single day.

Linny, more then anything you are the christian in my life, the person who unknowingly has led me back to the church and strengthened my personal relationship with God. I look to you so often for laughter and advice and you never ever let me down. I know that our friendship will withstand the strains of distance and that we will grow old together as (to use your words) sisters from another mother

Tracy, you are simply my other half, as we are both only children you have become a sister to me in so many ways, and being apart is like missing a limb every single day....we have laughed together until it has hurt and we have cried together - your ability to pick yourself up and carry on through the most tremendous adversity never ceases to amaze me and I just know that you will continue to go from strength to strength.

Vix, my friend you have been my quiet strength in so many ways and at so many different times...I can't describe the gap in my life where our precious teas used to be and I so wish that our two little boys could have grown up together like our girls did.

Mary, we have known each other a long time, and I have come to count on the fact that you will always be there....your friendship is unchanging and never ending and is a source of strength and joy to me that I can never properly express.

Kerry, my forthright friend, the person who will always tell it like it is and who I never have to pretend around. Kerry you have been there for me many times and your presence has often felt like a lifesaver, you don't judge me and accept me totally for who I am.

Tanya, my oldest friend, time has done nothing to weaken our bond, you know things about me that others can only imagine and you have stuck by me through it all - our friendship has been tried and tested over the years, and has survived to come back stronger then ever....I am so grateful for this opportunity to be involved in each others day to day lives again and I just know that we will be friends forever.

So thank you to all my girlfriends (those named and those not)......I count myself a very lucky person to have you all in my life!