Wednesday, March 24, 2010

FRIENDS

Two of my good friends are experiencing huge trials in their lives right now.

One is a military wife. Her husband was deported Sunday to Afghanistan for six months. He is an air force pilot. She has four young children.

Another is experiencing health problems. These problems are causing her much physical pain and discomfort.

Being friends with these two girls is a huge privilege for me. I am humbled as I watch them endure these trials. How they are handling their trials is strengthening me, and also teaching me about love and patience. My heart is touched deeply as they share their experience with me.

And suddenly, my own trials seem so minimal.

"We must make our own happiness. As President Spencer W. Kimball once said, 'Happiness does not depend upon what happens outside of you, but on what happens inside of you. It is measured by the spirit with which you meet the problems of life.'" (James E. Faust)

I love that. Happiness is directly related to and even 'measured by' how we handle the problems in our lives. Often I feel like I personally define happiness as the absence of problems in my life. My friends are amazing examples to me of meeting their trials in life with great courage, love, and even joy. As we develop friendships, I think we enlarge our ability to love and feel how others are feeling. I may have to take these friends with me, and others, in two months when we move for the next part of my husband's residency training - I have learned so much from them and feel like I draw so much from their strength and love for life.

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