... The trio of pictures is complete!!

Any of you folks out there that spend any time talking with me as of the past few months know that I have a fair amount of stories based upon good times with a certain trio of people... (and I'm pretty sure that was probably a run-on sentence, but oh well.) hehe. Besides the understandable exception of my sisters, these two girls can distract, giggle, crack inside jokes, and gallivant around with me better than anyone! Funniest part of the story-- we've only really been close friends for maybe 6 months.

Quick overview-- it was a song, in fact, that brought us together. We'd known of each other, and brushed shoulders at church in the ward-- I seemed to always be in contact with the choir pianist and the Relief Society president... weird eh? ;) hehe. Well, a certain someone had been asked to put together a musical number and she'd wanted to have her mother come up perhaps and sing a duet with her... that's where I stepped in... I, being the eager soul that I am, requested to sing the duet. Turns out, that was one of the best bold requests I've ever made. Thus began the adventures of the 3 Musketeers. Such a title stemmed from the fact that we were pretty much ALWAYS together... at least when we weren't studying. (Bah ha!! Studying around those two was a laugh and a half! Never got anything done.) Problem was, eventually we determined if only 2 of us were together, it wasn't completely distracting-- we could still have a grand 'ol time talking and giggling, but not uncontrollably. Add a specific third party though, and wowza... we pulled out all the stops on the uncontrollable laughter part of the deal. Once the inside jokes began to fly, we couldn't be stopped. Quote walls were formed, letters of invitation to our Musketeer-ish-ness were written, the behavioral definition of cuddling was officially commissioned, and late night conversations became the norm.

One day, two of us were together- studying, and getting a lot accomplished actually. Then, a phone began ringing... on the other line was the missing third of our party. She quickly asked if the two of us were together, little did she know she was already on speaker phone. :D A story ensued, of course, and we giggled together via cell phone. Oh, one other fact about the 3 of us... for some reason, we managed to always snap pictures when we're together. With the help of facebook, we immortalized this phone conversation and tagged the phone in the middle as the before-mentioned third party. As time went on, we added another similar picture with a different of us tagged as the phone, and now... the set is complete. Just thought I'd share. ;) These girls have been such a blessing in my life. I know now the power of the influence of good friends. There's not much more important than surrounding yourself with the right people. Love you two!

I've come to realize more and more that life is about people.

But literally... think about it- the only thing around us that has been around forever and will last forever is everyone around us. People and the relationships we form here on Earth are the most important thing we'll ever accomplish while we're here. You know that funny 'click' feeling you get with some friends or family and you just feel like you've known each other for forever and a day? I honestly believe that we re-form such close relationships from days before we remember-- we most certainly had relationships with people before this mortal life, and when we are lucky enough to reunite with those closest to us then, we become, as the phrase goes "like sisters (or brothers)"... ironic, isn't it, that we know we're all spirit sons and daughters of the
same Heavenly Father, and thus siblings?

Life is about people. The moments we share with each other, the selfless acts of service we exchange, the late night conversations, the deep 'mysteries of the universe' discussions, and the love and bond and connection we feel toward those we're close to.

Working where I do and for who I do, this fact has become even more apparent. When I get to host guests for a week at a time and experience some groups come together in more ways than we'd even hoped for... and then stay in touch with each other and us... it's pretty incredible. We had a 46 year old gentleman with us on the trip this last week-- his name was Tim and he has Down Syndrome. This man taught me so much this week- he taught me that there is another level of enthusiasm for life that most of us don't even come close to realizing- he taught me that willing hands and an obedient attitude can always allow you to be helpful- he taught me that being accepting of someone isn't a particular act, it comes with a general love for the person you're around. Life is about people. There are no other things that can replace the people you come in contact with.