¡Feliz Cumpleaños, Hermanita Compañera!

24 years ago a very special girl was born. I don't know a single thing about that day, however I do know that the only thing she remembers about her brother's birth is that she ate blueberry pancakes, and I am sure hers was much more momentous. 

Lindsey Carter came into my life when I joined Alpha Gam. The day that I met her she took a thousand pictures of me, which was a little weird, but she liked Karen Kingsbury, The Office, and Dave Barnes so I didn't think she could be so weird that it was unsafe.

I don't know how it happened exactly, but I think it had something to do with a couple really late night talks after watching The Office and Grey's on a Thursday night. She listened to me. She understood me. She was so much like me. It was like our hearts knew each other before we did.

I had the privilege of living with Lindsey for a whole year, and I still miss her every day. The night we moved back in, we hardly had all of our stuff in before we were both crying on the futon in the living room. It was like we had to do that in order for it to be our place. Some nights were spent laughing until we cried. Some nights were full of crying. I'll never forget sitting in between our rooms one night with such a heavy heart, tears streaming down my face. I was broken. And Linds sat down with me, held my hands, and prayed for me. That wasn't an uncommon scene in our house. We had picnics on the roof outside my window and sometimes Linds brought her guitar and we sang out there too. Even now somehow I feel closer to Jesus out there. Crazy, I know, but it's so peaceful and still. And when it was too cold for the roof, we ate cereal sitting on the counter. We went to Mexico together. We had some intense Jesus dance parties and some awesome times of worship in her room. Some Saturdays were just meant for laying in bed watching Bones or Gilmore Girls and eating grilled cheese and playing Phase 10. No one in the world loves snow more than Lindsey Carter. Seriously. Snow days with her are the best. And she appreciates my long hair. And supports my music addiction.

Linds spent her 23rd birthday at a hospital with me. It was also her last bid day. I have very few memories of the moment after the leg breaking, but I do remember that Linds was there. And that I kept telling her to pull up my pants as I was carried off the drill field because I felt it was not appropriate for my underwear to be showing all over the drill field. She assured me it wasn't, but just did what I told her to. I had a moment of being very angry at God that day, and she let me cry and yell about it and then just prayed for me. When I got home that night she washed my feet that were all dirty from the hospital and painted my toe nails for me because she said I couldn't go to bed with dirty feet. And then she slept on the couch while I slept on the futon because she didn't want me to be alone and I wasn't allowed to go up  any stairs yet. The next few months, Lindsey was the definition of service. When my crutches bruised my hands and arms, she wrapped ace bandages around them and covered them in cute fabric. If I needed it, she got it. I believed God was going to heal me, and so did she. No one else claimed that on my life with me like she did. And celebrated when He did it. Those few months were the hardest but most incredible months of my life, and Linds had a lot to do with that.

I am blessed beyond words to have such a precious, wonderful, Godly woman in my life.

Lindsey, you are a blessing to everyone you meet. I am thankful every single day for your friendship. God has some some incredibly huge plans for you- so much bigger than the ones we are praying for now. Thank you for believing for me when I couldn't. Thank you for loving me at my worst and weirdest moments... and never thinking they were the worst or weird. Thank you for praying for me. And for Cosbie... long before we knew who he was. I am blessed to call you friend. I LOVE YOU!