Heading into the New Year with some giggles

Only a few more hours until the clock will strike midnight and I'll say goodbye the 2006 and hello to 2007. I came to Charleston with Marlie and Amy and I have spent almost every waking moment laughing. We've laughed until we have cried at everything from Hyman's Seafood to Robert E. Lee. We've nicknamed each other, shopped, taken historical tours and taken over 4 million pictures.

We've had our room comp'ed for the weekend by a friend I have here at the Mills House. A last minute Christmas present that we all appreciated! They even put us on the floor that Robert E. Lee supposedly haunts...that has been the focus of many jokes that I will never be able to share outside of this city.

I've walked for hours laughing with them...we've explored this entire beautiful city and we've explored our friendships even more. The truth is, without these two I would never make it to midnight. I would probably crawl into bed and try to sleep away the turn of the new year. As I sit here listening to them laugh and begin to get ready for our night out I realize that this year I truly realized what a "friend" is.

A friend is someone who you can turn to at any point and know that they will steadfastly stand by you. It's someone that you can count on to lift you up, be down with you when you need them, lean on them when you feel as if you are going to fall, and lastly, its the person that when all others are gone, they are still next to you waiting for whatever comes next.

This year I learned just how many "friends" God has blessed me with and for that I will be forever greatful. God has put some amazing people in my life and I only hope that one day I can show some of these wonderful people how much their strength and encouragement has meant to me over the last 8 months.

Peace to everyone this New Year's Eve...I hope midnight brings us all a renewed sense of hope for the coming year.