Today February 16.

I am sitting here at the computer wondering what it is I should write.  Then it occurred to me that tomorrow is, what use to be my best friend's, birthday.  Stephanie and I had gone to the same schools back in California.  I first met here in Elementary.  I then moved.  At junior high, I ran into here again.  Weird.  It wasn't until high school that she and I got to be really good friends.  Inseparable.  Thing is we got into drugs along the way.  She more than I, but still I was right there with her.  She had an older boyfriend, who had older friends and that is who we would hang out with, until I met my boyfriend.  Still she and I were inseparable.  Then at 15 I found out that I was pregnant.  This really put an end to our partying days.  I made the decision to keep my baby, she made the decision to continue her lifestyle.  She got into heavier drugs.  Heroin was now her drug of choice.  I tried talking some sense into her, but it didn't work.  She would lie and tell me she doesn't use anymore, but I could see the track marks.  She came over one day just after shooting up.  She sat in the chair nodding off during our conversation, then once she came around asked me if she could take my 12 month old son to the store with her.  My reply to her was, "You are high, and can't even stay awake and you want to cross the highway with my son?  No way, if you want to go and get killed be my guest but you are not taking my son with you."
I rarely saw her after that, and after a while she dropped off the face of the earth.  I ran into her once when I was 18 or so.  I was at a local restaurant celebrating my birthday along with my cousin whose birthday is right after mine, when in walks these two hookers.  It was Steph!  I could not believe my eyes.  She didn't recognize me at first, but we talked briefly as she was in a hurry, then she left.  I never saw her again.  Years past and I searched for her, but I came up empty.  Fearing her dead, I finally let go about a year ago.  This past October I received a notification on my MYSPACE account that Stephanie had written to me.  WOW!  25 years have past, and here she is.  I couldn't believe it.  Curiosity got the best of me, so I went to MYSPACE right away.  She had pictures of her and everything.  It was Steph alright!  You can tell that drugs had worn at her, but she was still beautiful.  She has two sons, and is completing her degree in Accounting.  She honors Christ as saving her from the life she once lived, and continues to fight to stay sober.  I am proud of her.  I wish I could have helped her those many years ago, but I couldn't.  She didn't want to be helped.  I thought that losing our friendship would have meant something, but it didn't.  Drugs take over and you have no control over your wants and needs unless you truly put your mind to it.   I don't know when she made that decision to get sober, but I applaud her.  She must have thought enough of us and our friendship to search for me, because once she found me she told me that she loved me and that I was always one of the few special people in her life.  25 years!!  Now that's a friendship.  Oh yeah!  Happy 44th Birthday Stephanie.