A Sentimental Journey

Well, its that time again. The school year is ending/ended. Things get wrapped up, transitions are made. This is the 6th year I've gone through this process, so you'd think it would get easier. You would think it would get easier to watch yet another class of your friends graduate (ahead of you), to have your social life take a big hit, to make this transition. But it really doesn't get easier. Every graduating class brings with it another group of people who have loved me, another group of people that I have leaned on to get by. My "five minute radius" hates this time of year. Having friends within that radius doesn't really happen in the summer. And with graduating, it just doesn't return to 'normal'.

Do not get me wrong. I am very happy for my graduating friends. They have worked so hard to get to this point and I am excited to see where God will take them. I also get excited when God keeps them around here and I get to see them often. Yes I do get excited.

Oh that time again. That time when first years have to learn the painful lesson that you cannot actually stay in touch with allllllll the people they met this year, while they are apart for the summer. They will start to refine and pare and begin to see who the real friends are - who will really take a road trip out to see them, or who will really email them often, call or ack...send snail mail?!? They will also come back in the fall and pick up with people they haven't spoken a word to all summer and it will be like they were never apart. That will give them hope. It gives me hope. It shows me that after four (or more or sometimes much less) years of crafting a friendship that distance and life events do not have to come in the way of friendship. That it really, really is possible to pick up the phone and have it just a comfortable as the days when you ran over to their dorm and declared a study break, or celebrated off-campus living with a fine drink, or stayed up ridiculously late working on papers at Tim Hortons, or going for walkies. And first years too will come to know this.

The transition will be made. God will scatter his people like seeds in the wind. I am one of those seeds and one day the wind will pick me. In the meantime I stay planted and see what will continue to grow.