A Memory

Yesterday I met my girlfriend, Jennifer, and her 14-year-old daughter for lunch. We had a great time talking about the "olden days." Jennifer and I have been friends since 3rd grade and we have a ton of great memories...one, in particular, bonded us for life.

In 1995, Jennifer, another high school friend of ours, and myself lived in an apartment here in Helena. We all had jobs and were responsible, but we also really had a good time going out (yes, we spent lots of time drinking and living it up!) One evening in October we were hanging out watching TV when Jennifer very abruptly left the room....right in the middle of a conversation. I'm not sure why, but I seemed to be noticing every little detail from that moment on. The rest of the evening she kept disappearing into her room and changing her clothes. I thought it was wierd, but I didn't ask her why. The next morning I got up at my usual time to get ready for work. When I walked out of my room I noticed all of the lights were on in our apartment and, again, kind of felt like something was strange. Little did I know.

I walked into the livingroom and Jennifer was laying on the couch. I think I said something like "What are you doing?" She said "Christy, I don't know how to tell you this, but I'm pregnant and in labor. Would you please take me to the hospital?" I put my hand on my forehead and asked if I could get dressed and do something with my hair. She said yes, but told me to hurry. We woke up our roommate, who was as dumbfounded as I was, and we headed to the hospital. On the way, I thought to ask how far apart her contractions were and she said a few minutes. Yikes!

Once we got to the hospital, we established that Jennifer had not told a single soul about her pregnancy and had not received any prenatal care. Knowing what I know now, I am amazed nothing went wrong! Anyway, once Jennifer was settled into a room, I offered to call her parents. Luckily I have known these people most of my life....but it was still hard to tell them they were about to become grandparents....immediately. Thankfully, Jennifer's dad answered the phone. I just kind of blurted out "We're at the hospital with Jennifer and she's having a baby!" It took him a bit to say anything, but then he said they would be right there. It only took them a few minutes to arrive and we could her Jennifer's mom all the way down the hall. The poor woman was close to hysterics....not that I blamed her. After that, things seem to move very quickly. Little Miss Samantha was born shortly after 11:00 that morning...a perfectly healthy baby girl. I'll never forget that moment....it was life-changing for all of us.

I learned alot of things that day - especially, what it means to be a friend through thick and thin, the wonder of childbirth and motherhood, and how God's blessings come in many forms. At first, Jennifer considered giving Sami up for adoption, but I think it only took her a few hours to decide this was her daughter....forever. It took some time, but Jennifer shared the news with Sami's dad and they forged ahead with their relationship. Today, Jennifer and Blaine have been together for 14+ years and have given Sami a little sister and a little brother.

Whenever it seems that I just don't understand God's will, I think of Jennifer and Sami....and I know He has an amazing plan for all of us....we just have to believe.