goldenlaceddreams2

Thunder rolls over a dark dreary sky as I reflect over the past twenty-five years. How could it possibly been that long ago? After all, we were only kids too impatient to grow up. It seems I only blinked my eyes and now here I am reflecting back on what it might have been like if your life could have lasted and our childish reasoning could have endured just a little bit longer.

You're somewhere in heaven now, and sometimes it seems like my life has been put on hold. I think of all the things we pondered in our hearts, and of all the plans we made; we never counted on being separated so suddenly or so tragically. Somehow it comforts me to remember all the dreams we shared. They were all so real and so within reach. I guess yours were just fulfilled in the most complete way.

Now even, I am beginning to realize just where my own fondest hopes and dreams lie.

Veterinarian school, an apartment away from home, and a forty acre horse and cattle ranch seems a little out of our reach now. I remember it was if by some miracle we envisioned that we would go to the same college, attend the same classes, marry two guys who were best friends as we were and live with our forty-acre farms joining property lines.

Since I've grown up, my dreams have grown up too. God just took a little bit more of my heart to Heaven when He took your life from this earth. I don't feel bitter toward Him for leaving my life with that sudden emptiness, but I miss you terrible at times. However, when I feel sad and lonely; I just find comfort in knowing that now I have one more reason to get excited about Heaven.

You were always there for me and your love and compassion are still sweet and fresh in my heart and in my mind just the way it always was.

We sure did some crazy things together. My favorite memory is the day we were horseback riding through the sage grass. It had grown thick and tall which made it easy to get lost even on horseback; which made a very interesting and fun game of hide-n-seek. That day, I remember seeing you laugh so hard that it took a major effort for you to stay on your horse!

Then there was the time that we found the heart-shaped constellation while we were lying out under the stars on our sleeping bags. We talked, laughed and solved all the world's problems until we fell asleep; then after waking later with shivering chills, we discovered that we were soaked through and through with the night time dew.

All these and many more are countless memories that I will always treasure and hold dear. Life without you by my side was certainly not what I had planned on; but if there can be something beautiful about death on this side of Heaven, then I know that if by chance that the tables were turned and our lives could be switched, then you'd be sitting here writing this story instead of me.

Whoever said that dreams don't come true? That person must have never had a special friend to love and nurture their dreams.

Maybe OUR dreams were just too wonderful and full of forever to be fulfilled in a lifetime. Although, somewere deep in our hearts I think you and I both knew that our dream would never die. It's just that instead of being laced with green grass and wild flowers and instead of every frame of our dream being dotted with horses and bright shiny faces of new calves, OUR dream lies in the magic fingertips of our Heavenly Father. For what we leave incomplete in a lifetime He then fulfills and laces with pure gold.