How a Girlfriend’s Laughter can lead to Tears | In Memory of a Friend
Friday was a tough day for me. All my girlfriends have either left the company I work at or were out of town. Not to complain, but I just wanted to have lunch with a girlfriend. I needed some laughter and great conversation to cut the day in half.
My friend Holly and I always had the best lunches. No matter how your day was or how you felt, her laughter would light up the entire room and pull you into such a blessed place that you consciously were happy just being near her. After we both moved away from Minnesota, we rarely had the opportunity to have lunch together. Now that she’s gone, I won’t have that cherished, wonderful opportunity every again.
First, I need to tell you a little about my friend Holly. She loved her family and friends with an overflowing passion. She constantly inspired me and made me feel better about myself. Her friendship was treasured by all who knew her. Unfortunately, she succumbed to cancer last Thanksgiving. In my grief, I was just so honored to be able to be in MN to attend her memorial at her favorite art center (where she and I had taken pottery and metal work together).
At the memorial, amidst her works of art (like this shirt that she created with batik – that hangs inside my closet door so I see it, and think of her, everyday), her husband and sons shared the story of her life and professed their love and admiration for her. It was the most heart-breaking ceremony I’ve ever attended. I wasn’t up to sharing – but I wanted to. I wanted to tell funny Holly stories and listen to others’ tales of her infectious humor and joy.
After the memorial I emailed her husband. I told him about some of the amusing stories and events that I shared with Holly. I also included a story that Holly told me about buying a very expensive, ornate armoire – without telling David, her husband. Knowing that he might be a bit concerned over her purchase, she resorted to something perfectly Holly! She purchased an expensive silk tie for him. When he came home from work, she greeted him in front of the new furniture with nothing on except the tie and just said, “So … how do you like the armoire?”
I emailed him that I didn’t know if it was a true story or not but I loved that story because it was so Holly. He wrote me back with just a quick answer – “It was a very nice tie!”
Friday, several months after she left us all, I just wanted to have lunch with her. To ask her advice, be part of her laughter, have her smile at me one more time. But, in all my sadness (and I can’t even imagine what her family feels), I am so humbled to have had her as my girlfriend.
In my tears, I celebrated a blessed girlfriend. Don’t delay in spending time with a girlfriend. Call her for lunch. Take her to dinner. Send her a card or give her a call. Then say a word of thanks for the gift of her friendship. Thanks Holly. I love you and am so blessed to have been your friend.
- Share on:
2 Comments
I love your tie story! This is so much the essence of her creative spirit and outlook on everything.
Holly was so gifted and brilliant – far beyond what she herself recognized – so smart, witty and clever in disguising the drone, the strange, the troubling and the sad with such delicate (or indelicate) restatements.
She is missed but is still with us. We have the many rich memories she gave us. And of course, some of us have t-shirts and pots…
Marnie
God I’m very sorry for your friend Holly even she seems so beutiful in an out. I’m happy that you had a great friend like that maybe if you can’t see her bit you can talk to her, that’s if you really want to well good luck an hope you ate doing OK now god bless ya.
4 Trackbacks
[...] passed away right before Thanksgiving (and her memorial was the Saturday after Thanksgiving). So, in memory of Holly, thanks for your friendship and for being a beautiful, amazing women. Share this with your [...]
[...] and metal work together and she created amazing batik clothing. (Here’s one of my favorite past posts about Holly – read it to see how special she was and see her batik work.) At her memorial, her family [...]
[...] You never know what memories you’ll make together … Several years ago my girlfriends decided to take Ballet. I didn’t want to be left out so I took it took. It was hilarious! We had a blast and laughed until we cried as we barely made it through the class. I’ll never forget the pottery classes I took with my friend Holly (as well as our welding class). We encouraged and helped each other. We learned about each other as we discovered a passion for creatively ‘throwing clay’ and have the bowls and vases to remind us of those fun times together. (Read more about that amazing friendship and our pottery classes.) [...]
[...] My girlfriend Holly had amazing style. She was definitely artsy and creative. (We took pottery and metal work classes together, shared many a laughing lunch together and shared our lives for years until she passed away from cancer. I still miss her.) She would have LOVED this Pink Birdhouse Mirror. LOVED IT! Maybe you have a girlfriend like her too. Here’s the scoop: a wooden mirror, hand painted with embossed copper and 24K gold, silver, & copper leaf. Signed on bottom. Have an artsy friend with a whole bunch of style? Wouldn’t she LOVE this? [...]