I met Shelli in 1987. We almost instantly hit it off and have been friends ever since then. Now there were a few times that we didn't always see eye to eye, but we were young and stupid and didn't know any better.
I have shared more laughter with her than any other friend that I have had. We have experienced heartaches together, helped each other through broken relationships, and have so many secrets that we will take to our graves that I don't think there will be room for our caskets. We have taken road trips that will go down in history as some of the craziest things we have ever done (like the 12 hour visit in Ohio and then coming back home). In fact when 9/11 happened we were together in Nashville and not knowing what lied ahead for our country and for our safety we got through it and became even closer because of it.
She was dubbed my children's Aunt Shelli at the birth of my first child (where she hid behind the curtain in the delivery room) and she has maintained that relationship for 23 years and has now extended that to being a great Aunt Shelli to my granddaughter. I have no doubt that should anything ever happen to me that my children will never need for anything, because that bond that she has with them is more than just an "aunt by proxy."
There may be weeks and sometimes longer that we go without seeing each other; without talking on the phone and only keep lines of communication open through text messages here and there. But she has always been there for me - no matter what the circumstance, the time or the place.
She is without a doubt one of the most original people I have ever known. In the span of over 25 years I have never once seen her in a bad mood or not enjoying life to the fullest. She's one of those people that you just have to say once "let's try it" and she's all in. Now she does have a few faults - she relies too much on what Dr. Phil says and puts entirely too much faith in Oprah. I think they have conned her into every self-help, feel-good-about-yourself and make-the-most-out-of-life books that have ever been published. But over the years I have learned to overlook those little idiosyncrasies :)
It is very rare in life that one finds a lifelong friend that sticks by you no matter what. One that tells you what you need to hear and not what you want to hear. One that will always be that one person you can always trust, that you can always turn to and one that will never judge you when you fall short of their expectations of you. I have that in my friend Shelli and I am so blessed.
Don't get me wrong - I have more friends in this life than I deserve to have. It's just that once in a while there's that certain person who goes far above and beyond the requirements of friendship and instead becomes a part of your family, and when you have that person they deserve to be celebrated.
She has always said that she is my biggest fan - and she probably is; she always encourages me - never doubts me and pushes me constantly into the direction that I want to go but I am sometimes afraid to. It's a two way street though because I am in awe of the person that she is and I am so highly favoured by God that He chose to place someone like her in my life.
Happy birthday Shelli! I love you!
