On a bit of a serious note...

My first day back to work this week, Tuesday, I was reading through my emails at work only to find that a good friend and co-worker of mine was killed in a car accident on her way to work Sunday morning. I was stunned. Over the past year I have truly been grateful for the opportunity's I've had to attend the Sunday pot-luck of the department next to me. They were nice enough to invite me and a friend also in my department I'll call Idaho, and though it is mostly this particular department, they are welcoming to many others. Though it's sad I can't attend church on those weeks, the people I have come to know and get closer to have made it something to look forward to, and it has been an enormous learning experience for me--as well as an incredible opportunity to come to love so many people I wouldn't have known otherwise. This friend who died so suddenly, along with her father and mother (who also work with me), were some of the life-long friends I've made. They came here from Jordan, and since knowing them I've learned so much of their culture and of Islam; I've also developed quite a craving for Middle-Eastern food also. Our little Sunday group is comprised of so many people from different life-styles and religions, yet there is this air of warmth, openness, and respect that I've never experienced anywhere else. This family embodies these qualities, and are largely responsible for this atmosphere. I was unable to attend the funeral, which happened quickly because as Muslims do not embalm, and with it being my off week they were unable to get a hold of me and many others. However, I had the chance to go visit them and offer my condolences last night, along with the friend in my department. They were so warm and welcoming, and the love and appreciation towards us radiated from them. The first thing they did was hug us, as did all of their family members and friends I had either never met before, or had met only briefly, then they brought us food--desserts specifically. They replied that that was their custom to feed guests, after we were foolish enough to say we'd come to bring them food, not the other way around. We then talked about the wonderful accomplishments their daughter made, and about how they would miss her but she would always be in our hearts, and how proud they were of the person she grew up to be. She was my age exactly, and next week would have graduated from the program I am going into. Her mother said she sees her in everything and everywhere she goes, and her memory will live forever. They knew that was the book of her life, and that it was supposed to end that way--that she accomplished what she was supposed to in her life. It made me think of my own life: about what I need to do, where I need to go. They then told Idaho and I that we remind them of her, and that they love both of us like they do her...Like a daughter. I felt such a love towards them in return, and felt sad not only because I will miss her, but because it's so hard to watch her family in pain, though their strength and hope is admirable beyond belief. Needless to say, I was bawling by the end of this visit. I just found it amazing how similar some of the beliefs and the faith they expressed towards this event and to life in general were so similar to many of my own. God is truly blessing them. Anyway... I just wanted to document this event, and express my appreciation for being gifted enough to have known her, and to know all of the many wonderful people I have been blessed to know. I have so many friends I've known for so long, some even from elementary and middle school, and I'm really just blessed in the friends and family I have been given. Fortunately a friend isn't a gift you give yourself.