Farewell.

It's pouring rain outside, it's the middle of the night, and it's absolutely lovely.

Also.



I had the chance of going to two farewells today - one for my cousin Josh whom I worked with this summer and love dearly. He brings me such genuine joy and I have loved watching him transform into the happy, hard-working person he is today. It was beautiful to see him speak in the same meeting as his older brother Brock, who has just returned home from serving a mission in Taiwan. The Spirit was so powerful, and I was so proud to know both of those boys.

And then one for my very best friend Cody, which was coincidentally also beautiful.

I don't meant to be creepy (I realize I already earned +20 creepies by posting a picture that looks like we had a baby and he wants to hit me rather than get the hair out of my eyes, but really I just like how it shows how comfortable we are with each other.) but I just wanted to say that I feel really lucky today to have so many wonderful, true friends who hold the priesthood and are anxious to serve the Lord and give their all, and obey with exactness. Friends who have brought me so much happiness that I can't even express it.

I'll go ahead and get sentimental and really honest with you. In my life, I haven't ever had a very, very consistent friend for a long period of time. I usually go from person to person or group to group, not like I become NOT friends with the other person or group, I just have always spent my time with a lot of different people. And I think it's been very good for me, and helped me to know that I love being ME, no matter who I am with or not with or whatever, and helped me to meet so many different, wonderful people. I'm just always going to be Shelby, and I'm lucky that that fits with a lot of different people.

However, I have never had someone stick with me so consistently, and so incredibly patiently as my friend Cody has. I've had people I've called my best friends because of bursts of constant contact we had, but I've never had anyone who wanted to stay with me, and stay close. Until the past year. And it has been the absolute best one of my entire life. I have experienced true friendship. I have shared, across any amount of distance, state lines, sixty miles, or sometimes just a couple blocks, a year of life with another person. Every single triumph, heartbreak, scare, victory, testimony-builder, weird-man-passed-on-the-street-who-needed-to-be-recounted, good beard seen, and laugh with another human being. How lucky am I.

"True friendship helps give meaning to life. It is an anchor for the soul. Based on the pure love of Christ it is security and trust between two individuals and is stronger than the cords of death because it transcends this mortal existence."

Get ready, world. You've got some pretty incredible missionaries comin' atcha.

(Josh and Cody will be stellar missionaries, and I'm already gearing up to write them both letters so creepy, even the postman will wanna hear the gospel he'll be laughing so hard. Cause the Holy Ghost will tell him he has to read them, of courrrse! Gash. Church is just AWESOME.)