All last week I was on pins and needles for a call from our adoption agency. One that I never got, by the way. I did, however, get the kind of call no one ever wants.
It was one of those "are you with people?" calls.
An "are you sitting down?" call.
A call so bad that my cubicle mates started giving me looks as I started bawling.
A friend of mine from college, Dennis Foster, had died, suddenly. He was in my class, an education major like me, a fellow resident assistant, a man with ambitions, and a man who had the biggest crush on another education major, Crystal.
Fast forward almost ten years and Dennis and Crystal have two daughters and a lovely home. She's a teacher and he's a principal of a local elementary school. They were at my wedding. I've hosted her baby showers, we get pedicures together, he cooked black eyed peas for my momma on New Year's Day.
And now he's gone.
And I'm sad.
I've spent time with Crystal this weekend, as she makes funeral arrangements and consoles her daughters and deals with some of her own health problems. I've cried with her, for her, for him and for those of us left reeling by this death. She has screamed at the heavens, wailing and wanting it all to be just some story about other people. But it is not.
There is so much pain wrapped up in this situation and this morning at church I worshipped and cried through most of it, praising the God who gives and takes away. All weekend, I've been whispering "Jesus, be with us in this place."
So, prayers for my friend Crystal and her two daughters. This is going to be a hard road for them to travel.
I can't remember what made her laugh, but the expression is wonderful!
I don't know for sure that one of the birth moms picked someone else, but I know the other one put off her meeting. When I called the agency the other day they said they had just been looking at our profile in preparation for meeting with her after memorial day. They said to keep praying because she wasn't 100% sure about placing the baby. 
Something purple!
Charlie and I went around and around and tasted all the strawberries at each different stand, and then went back to this stand to buy. They were the best, although they were covered in sand. We brought them home and while I was outside reading at the patio table, Charlie went in and washed them all and hulled them! He had no idea that you didn't wash them until you were going to eat them, and I didn't understand why he thought cutting off the "handle" was helpful. LOL. Seriously, folks, it was a gallon of strawberries that we then had to eat in about three days. 
So, anyway, while I don't want to be pessimistic about this, I don't want to get excited either. I just want to be going about my normal day and not checking my phone a million times, which is what I predict will happen Thursday.
I got excited, I can't lie about that. Then, realistic me, stomped down on that excitement and realized that it can all fall through and I can't control it and that we need lots of prayer. 
What would it be like to wake up one day in a country where marrying the prince is actually possible? I mean, it is a FAIRY TALE for us Americans, because we don't live in a monarchy. (And yes, I know about Wallis Simpson, but come on.) I mean, Kate was born around the time of Prince William, so that narrows it down a little, and then ends up at the same college and same dorm. Circled narrowed even further. I mean, one day you work for your parents and the next day you are married to the prince, have the Queen as a grandmother, and in your lifetime you could be QUEEEEEEEN? I mean, it boggles me a little. 
