Throughout
my lifetime I’ve become pretty familiar with the saying that people come into
your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.
I think the
first time I really felt a “move” was when I was 10-years-old and my family
moved from our home in Portage, Indiana about 45-minutes away to LaPorte. It
was the summer before I entered fifth grade and I was excited to be near my
cousins and thought the move would be great.
The move
for me meant that I would leave friends I had known from the neighborhood,
friends I had known as long as I could remember, Lori Bonez, Katie Hatala,
Melissa Fekete, Holly Foreman, etc.
But I moved
to LaPorte and shortly I had become close with friends with whom I still get
together with today, Jen Howes, Gwen Burger, Meghan Martinsen. We were like the
four musketeers in middle school.
In high
school, I never really found my exact niche.
I was co-editor of the newspaper, co-editor of the yearbook, in
basketball and softball and friends with people who were jocks, artists and
those who never even wanted to enter the doors at LPHS. I also made great
friends, Jody Ryan and Michelle Reese through my work in the kitchen at LaPorte
Hospital.
Moving on
to college, I made great friends like Emily Steadman, Julie Walker and Laura
Baich and several others who made my years in Bloomington the best years away
from home that I could ask for. After I moved back home to work and go to
school, I relied on my best friend, Tearsa Schable, to get me through times
where I felt alone. I also made good
friends at the LaPorte Herald Argus and at IUSB.
Then, it
was South Bend. A place I’ve learned to call home and a place where sometimes I
don’t realize just how many people I’ve met! I moved here in September of 2001
and I’ve met people at AAA, Brenda Case, Cristie Carter, Diane Chrzan, Kathy
Stec, and so many more… I’ve met people
at some bars… Brenda Wilson, Robin Eaton, Katie Reaves, Russ Miner, Gary and
Danny, Carol Whitteberry, Kathleen Rozanski, Ken Odynski, ok… so many more! And
now to my friends at The Medical Foundation, Tamara Fairbank, Mary Swift,
Connie Bratton, Brett Colter, Laura Broadstreet, Joyce Simpson and so many
more.
It’s hard
to decide or…better yet, maybe they chose me? Who becomes a friend who is there
for a reason, a season or a lifetime? How do we know? How do we choose? Do we
choose them, do they choose us?
This week,
we bid farewell to Tamara Fairbank and wish her the best of luck as she moves
to New Hampshire. It’s with sadness that I lose a great friend who has brought
me lots of laughs and good times throughout the six years I’ve known her. But at the same time, I’m happy for her. I
wish her nothing but the best as she moves to what she thinks is a great place
to live…. Really, Tamara….SNOW????? J Couldn’t help it!
As you
drive away in the “tank,” I hope you will remember all of your Indiana friends
and that you will think of us as friends for a lifetime… not just a reason or a
season… Best of luck, my friend… may you enjoy this new chapter in your life.