A gift in this year: Beth.

That cute girl front and center there, that one in the green shirt posing? That'd be her.

Oh Bethany Joy Hiltibran.

Beth with Miss Katie. I heart the Hiltibran girls.

Beth and I this year...

spent a lot of time together at Starbucks.
And Target.

And Denny's.

...and the Starbucks in Target (how convenient!!).

I love her a lot, and I am so grateful for her presence in my life this year.

Beth is the younger sister of my dear friend Matt, who is virtual family. So naturally when Beth showed up for her freshman year at Wheaton, I assumed that meant she would want to hang out with me all of the time.

I'm still not completely sure how she felt about that plan (particularly the first week when she was moving in and I basically kept introducing myself to her new friends?! Sorry babe)... but I'm very grateful she went along with it.

I'm grateful for her sass and sense of humor. This girl makes me laugh. One intentionally raised eyebrow and she can make a point get across quite clearly.

I'm grateful for the maturity so evident in her as I got to hear her process some of her thoughts about life, faith, friends, leaving home and starting college.
I'm grateful for her servant's heart- she's babysitting a family in her mission's kids all summer as they work at a missions conference.

I'm grateful for the unique perspective growing up as an MK in Europe has given her and how she's used it to engage in life deeply.

Actually, as I think on that sentence- I'm grateful just for her unique perspective in general. Beth is unique. She is a strong person, has a deep love for the people in her life, gets nuance and subtext in life, and has a deep and real faith. Often talking to her I learned things or got a perspective on a situation I couldn't have gotten from anyone else.

I am so grateful I got to be a part of her freshman year. The first year of college is such an exciting time. I loved getting to see that with her and be a part of it.
It was so much fun to watch her friendships and life at Wheaton develop.
And I am SO proud of how she engaged here. (So, so, so. Seriously. She did awesome.)

I'm thankful for how much she encouraged me.

(I'm really sick of putting that I'm grateful for people listening to me patiently while I freak out about things, but) I am grateful for this girl and how she did that. She was patient and thoughtful and non-judgmental and it rocked.

She became a real friend to listen to and talk through things with and I loved it. I'm grateful for any chance I got to hear her thoughts.

(I love frequent friendships. You think you're just running to Target to pick up shampoo and a cute shirt, and all of a sudden you're spilling your guts.)

I'm grateful for all our many coffee dates and shopping dates. They were my favorite.

I'm so, so grateful we went to church together every week. Seriously. I loved going with her, Tim, and our buddy Jeremy. It was consistent and safe and joyful and meaningful and I missed it terribly the weeks they were on breaks!! I loved driving them (...I'm sorry I was always late, guys... really... I am.) I loved sitting together and taking Communion together. I love that we had that routine and those memories.

The Hiltibran clan on my deck last summer.

I'm also thankful for what my friendship with Beth represents. I really love friends that become family. (I may not give people a choice on the matter, but still). My friendship with Matt has been one of the deepest and most impactful I've had ever, and one of the things I love about it is the way it has spilled into other relationships. It felt like the most natural thing in the world that I would spend a lot of time with Beth this year; and, it was. It was obvious. I love that I worshiped on Sundays with Beth and Tim. I love that we celebrated birthdays and Easter together. I love that I got to hear them process stuff and that Beth stayed with me when her flight got delayed (that poor girl... it's a long story) and that Matt lived in the Ramsings' basement last fall and that their parents take me out to dinner when they come to visit whether Matt's there or not (Story- we go to Egglectic for Easter lunch- Beth: "Oh, I've been here before. We came on family weekend." Me: "We did? When? I don't remember that." Beth: "Not with my family- my roommate's parents took us out." Me: "Oh, okay... um, because obviously I would have been there and all...") I love the extra people we get to pray for and be prayed for by and love. True friendship like that is such a gift.

At brunch on Easter Sunday.

And this fun girl, specifically, was a gift to me in this year.

And I am going to miss her a ton this fall.

 Thanking God for giving me Beth this year.

.10.