My Inspirations- Jen N and Shannon G.

So recently, I have been in contact with some friends from high school (thanks Facebook). Now these girls were a grade higher than me, and so through high school we didn't really know each other. But I was in a small private school, in fact my grad class consisted of 40 students and their's- 20. So although I didn't know them well, I knew them somewhat. Well, through Fb in the last while, I have gotten reacquainted with them. The main way I have done that is through their blogs, which you can read here and here. These two women are incredible and if my faith were even half of what their's is, I would consider myself a blessed woman.

I have gone through a lot of shit. Let's face it. Those of you who know me know that. And yet, when I read of the struggles and of the heartache that besets these two women, I feel ashamed at my own lack of strength, lack of faith and lack of courage. What I really appreciate about these blogs is that they are heartfelt, they are authentic, and they are gut wrenchingly honest. They lay their hearts and souls bare to those who read their stories. Sometimes, they are angry, sometimes hopeless, sometimes despairing, sometimes fearful, sometimes joyful, sometime ecstatic and they choose to share their journey with those who would read it.

Many times, I anxiously await a blog post from these women, for their joy warms my heart, their faith stirs and encourages me, and their pain breaks me. I believe I have told them both this: but I honor and esteem these two women. And as a small token this is my tribute to them. I searched and searched for a number of hours but this is the best that I could come up with. Although the first verse doesn't apply, I find that, for the imprint that these two woman have left on me, the rest of the song does.