Saying Goodbye

This is one of my favorite families in the world.  I met Sheena and Garret in WalMart over 6 years ago, I knew they went to our church but I had never actually talked to them.  It took awhile to get our friendship going, but after a few babies apiece we started hanging out all of the time.  One thing I love about Sheena is how down-to-earth she is, she does not pretend to be something she's not.  And she is an amazing encourager!  She has the gift of encouragement and she uses it often.  

From the time we met I knew that the Flaggs wouldn't stay in Blacksburg forever, but we did have many years with them.  Garret stayed at VT until he couldn't go any further with his education!  And by last fall we knew that they were heading to Houston, TX for his job.

I had a lot of time to prepare to say goodbye.  But it didn't make it any easier.  You kind of get used to the transient nature of Blacksburg after awhile, people usually arrive here on the 2 or 3 year plan, and then they move on.  I think that makes it even harder when long-term friends move, because you have had so much more time together.  The one thing that makes it easier is knowing that one day we will have all of eternity together in heaven.

I've never been to Houston, but I can't wait to visit! And I really hope the kids will still call me "Aunt Julie".  

Future Post: Saying goodbye to the McKnights.  This summer is killing me.  What is it about Houston???