Last night Kyla, Laura, Emily, and I got together for dinner. We enjoyed salads and pizza at Eno’s, a pretty little restaurant in the Bishop Arts District, and afterwards we meandered over to one of my favorite spots, Emporium Pies, for dessert. As we lingered over coffee and pie, I looked around the table and felt myself on the verge of a having a moment – you know, one of those sweet beats in time where you just revel in the gratitude you have for your life, your community, your people.

I’ve known Emily for ten years – we met at Pepperdine University and God has woven a beautiful story throughout both of our lives that have led us to this moment, the one where we both live in Dallas, Texas. Laura and Kyla are kindred spirits who you already know if you’ve read my blog for the last several years – they were my first real pals in this city and they have proven to be the very best friends in the whole entire world. Through connections and get togethers and parties and gatherings, they’ve come to know and love Emily, and vice versa. I love watching the world get smaller like that, sitting by while friends of yours develop relationships in their own right, ones that started because of you but are certainly sustained outside of you.

So I was reflecting on these things, watching as our lives simultaneously change and expand and grow (with the addition of marriages and new jobs and babies and relationships) while also staying a little bit the same. I love that feeling, and I love this season that we’re in, the one that allows us to stay out on a Tuesday night, savoring coffee and pie, friendship and time together.