A Tribute to my Sisters

PRETEND THAT I POSTED THIS AT THE BEGINNING OF OCTOBER. Thanks :)

The past six weeks have been completely different from what I expected. There have been a lot of ups and downs, complications and frustrations. But during this time Heavenly Father has blessed me tremendously.

One of the things He has blessed me with is time to think. A recurring topic that runs through my mind is that of the many sisterhoods Heavenly Father has given me throughout my life. It’s kind of a cheesy word, sisterhood, but I have no other way to describe it.  One of the many definitions Dictionary.com gives sisterhood is this: congenial relationship or companionship among women; mutual female esteem, concern, support, etc.

I couldn’t agree more.

The first time I ever felt really connected with such a large group of girls was the high school dance team we had my junior year. This year was very special for me. I decided to get back surgery the summer following that year, so I could recover when I was a senior before I went to BYU. It was my last year of dancing, something that I had spent my whole life loving. I wanted it to be the best year ever, and it was, because of my team. It ended up being my favorite year of high school.

The girls on Lancer Dancers that year were some of the best people I had ever met. I fell in love with them so quickly. Our team was very new, and those of us who were returning team members were determined to make it a loving and safe place for us. We spent so much time together, we had fun together, we were serious together, we cried and laughed and worked hard. We were friends. For me, I would say best friends. I looked forward to seeing them every day.

Sorry, it has seriously been so long that I am having the hardest time describing what it was like. Probably because it was so perfect it feels like a dream. Honestly it was a dream, the best dream I ever had up to that point in my life. Over and over again that year I would have waves of warmth and happiness wash over me, and I would find myself thinking “I am never going to feel this way ever again.” I honestly thought it was impossible to be so happy. And I really did think it was a one-time thing.

Little did I know that my freshman year at BYU I would be blessed with another group of amazing girls. We found each other our first Sunday. Honestly I don’t even remember how we found each other, we just did. And we were tight ever since. I loved those girls. They were one of the major reasons why I was so happy at BYU and why I didn’t want to leave. A lot of us were called to serve missions after that year. My heart ached whenever I thought about having to leave them. During these moments, Alma 17:2 (a scripture in the Book of Mormon, watch a short video about it here https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2015-00-1010-what-is-the-book-of-mormon-a-60-second-overview?lang=eng ) became one of the most comforting scriptures:

“Now these sons of Mosiah were with Alma at the time the angel first appeared unto him; therefore Alma did rejoice exceedingly to see his brethren; and what added more to his joy, they were still his brethren in the Lord; yea, and they had waxed strong in the knowledge of the truth; for they were men of a sound understanding and they had searched the scriptures diligently, that they might know the word of God.”

As I prayed in gratitude for these friendships I had at BYU, I would also cry and say the familiar phrase “I’m never going to feel this way ever again”. I imagine Heavenly Father was softly smiling at me during those times, and gently whispering “Just wait”.

So I left on my mission. It was the hardest thing ever. Seriously. But during this time I was sent to Lewiston, Idaho. Oh man I love that place. You know who else got sent to Lewiston, Idaho? Some of the most incredible, loving, faithful girls in this whole world. There were several of us who were there for a loooong time. And by long time I mean six months or more. Yeah. It was the coolest.

There’s nothing that can describe being sister missionaries together. Nothing. Your whole purpose is to bring everyone around you to Christ. Everyone. That included us. And they did. They brought me closer to Him by loving me the way the Savior does, by serving me, laughing with me, and crying with me. THEY MADE ME SO HAPPY. They were the best friends I had ever had. And I felt like Heavenly Father said “Here, Sister Reed. These are for you.”

If I had never served a mission I would have never met them. And if they were the only good thing that came from me serving I would still consider my mission one of the greatest gifts Heavenly Father gave me (luckily it wasn’t J). I can’t imagine my life without them.

Getting transferred to a new area and leaving them was one of the most painful things I’ve ever experienced. And I thought to myself “Okay, seriously this time, this is really it. I am never going to feel this way ever again.” Thank goodness I was wrong. Again.

For the rest of my mission I experienced friendships similar to this, in Moscow and in Spokane Valley. I went home from my mission, went back to BYU and made more friends, because that’s what you do when you move all the time. I have had many close friends during this time and I am so grateful for them. In my mind I’ve never described any of these as a sisterhood though. I think because I had honestly thought I used up all of my sisterhood cards.

And then, I moved to China.

There are 6 of us here in my group: Brooklyn, Lexie, Makayla, Brianna, Monique, and yours truly. We have lived together for six weeks now. In case any of you were wondering, living with someone is a fast track to becoming really good friends.

Within one week I already felt so connected to all of them. I felt like I could be myself more than I could with some people who have known me my whole life. We have experienced some hard things together (our first school didn’t work out, we moved to Beijing, and there’s still some hiccups here), and those things were a great catalyst to the development of our friendship. We’re all so different, but I love them all so much. 

A few weeks ago I was having one of those gratitude moments with Heavenly Father and I thought “Here I am again. I am experiencing the joy that comes from a sisterhood again.” I think at this point I’ve finally learned to stop putting limitations on the happiness Heavenly Father can give me throughout my life. He knows that sisterhoods bring me so much joy. He has given all of them to me, because He cares about me, and wants me to be happy. And I imagine that He will continue to bless me with them for the rest of my life.

One of my other all time favorite scriptures is 2 Nephi 1:30-31. In 2 Nephi 1, Lehi is blessing all of his posterity because he’s about to pass away. Zoram, while not a familial descendant of Lehi, also receives a blessing:

“And now, Zoram, I speak unto you: Behold, thou art the servant of Laban; nevertheless, thou hast been brought out of the land of Jerusalem, and I know that thou art a true friend unto my son, Nephi, forever.

Wherefore, because thou hast been faithful thy seed shall be blessed with his seed, that they dwell in prosperity long upon the face of this land; and nothing, save it shall be iniquity among them, shall harm or disturb their prosperity upon the face of this land forever.”

This scripture taught me that friendships are eternal. The older I get, the more friends I make, which makes life so much sweeter. With this joy comes a little bit of sorrow, because it is impossible to stay in touch with everyone you love once you leave each other. But knowing that friendships will last forever gives me so much peace, because I know that life doesn’t end on earth. I will see all of them again (that is, if they want to see me J).

So to ALL of my friends that I have ever had (past, present, young, old, male, female, etc.) thank you for being a part of my life. Please know that your love for me has always been and still is very much appreciated. And especially to my sisters, thank you for loving me for me.