For Sarah

My friends and I all turn 30 this year.  It’s a big milestone.  I’ve started honoring some of the fantastic thirty-year-old women in my life with words of love here on the blog.  Today is Sarah’s birthday.  Happy Birthday Friend.

I met Sarah freshmen year at the University of Illinois when we pledged the same sorority.  I’ve searched all the dusty corners of my mind trying to remember exactly when I met her or the moment when our friendship solidified but I can’t quite conjure the memory.  I have a vague sense that it began during shared phone duty in the pine room of the Chi Omega house, but I can’t be sure.  It’s as though Sarah has always been there: a constant and comforting fixture of my college experience and beyond.

Because when I think of college I think first of Sarah and Whit.  The three of us found each other freshmen year and spent the next four years being inappropriately and probably obnoxiously obsessed with each other.  We lived together in the Chi Omega house for a year and a half and spent our senior year in an apartment with two other Chi O’s, Sarah A. and Ash.

Sarah grew up in a small, one (or maybe none?) stoplight town outside of Rockford.  On a farm.  With cows.  Her background was fascinating to my suburban upbringing.  Despite her small town background, or maybe because of it, Sarah strived to get the most out of the experiences the world had to offer.  She sought out those that were different, always wanting to learn about lifestyles and worlds different from her own.  She knew there was a big world out there and she was not about to miss any of it remaining comfortable with the familiar. 

In college Sarah was that perfect combination of driven and carefree.  She worked harder than anyone I knew, joining a million different activities, all of which would be major resume boosters.  I didn’t know what a resume was and consequently spent time doing activities that did nothing for me career wise.  Meanwhile Sar occupied herself as president of our sorority and something called SAA.  I’m still not really sure what that was about but I know she got to meet really important and famous U of I alums and the university president and plan big university events.  Clearly Sar was a big deal.

But she was also wickedly funny and always up for a good time.  All my peeing your pants with laughter memories involved Sar.  Self-deprecating, generous and witty, Sarah brought life to the party.  She may have been Madam President of Chi Omega but that didn’t stop her from breaking into fraternities to steal composite boards and feigning ignorance when their president called the next day.

Sarah taught me what loyalty looked like in friendship.  I don’t know that I’ve ever met anyone as loyal as Sar.  It was the source of many of our fights.  I was always caught up with doing whatever was “right” or more often whatever reflected best on me.  Sarah always did whatever made her the best, most loyal friend.

She is still just as loyal.  And generous.  Sarah would give you the shirt off her back (and did numerous times in college when my clothing choices made me look like a third grader).   She is still just as loving and funny and driven as she was 10 years ago.

In college Sarah had a plan.  She was going to take over the business world.  Every internship, club, or class was a step towards the direction of a high-powered career in marketing.  After college that plan culminated in the kind of jobs with the kind of salary she had always wanted.  Her drive and work in college paid off and shortly after graduation Sarah found herself living the dream.

But Sarah found it wasn’t nearly as fulfilling as she’d expected.  Sure they pay was good and the success felt nice, but the hours were long and they took her away from her friends and loved ones- the things that really mattered to Sar.  She began to think about what she wanted her life to look like with kids and it didn’t include lots of hours making money for people who already had a lot of money.  So Sarah did something huge.  She gave it all up and went back to school to be a speech therapist.  To spend her working hours helping kids who need to find their voice. 

I have watched her maneuver this career change profoundly impressed with her courage and sense of self.  It takes a lot of bravery to turn your back on the path you’d spent your whole life planning for.  It is daring to walk away from something that’s defined you, particularly when you’ve been so good at it.  It takes grit and guts to leave behind the comfort ability and financial security that kind of work offers.  But Sarah did it anyway.  She took bold steps in a new direction.  She took stock of what was most important to her and built a new life around those things.

I’m really proud of this sweet friend of mine.  As a mom very familiar with speech therapists I know Sarah will be awesome.  And while her future clients may be a little less connected or high profile than her former ones, I have no her impact will be even greater than before.  She will help these kiddos find their voice and enable them to go out into the world and succeed at whatever they desire. 

Happy birthday Sarah!  I’m so thankful I’ve gotten to call you friend for 12 years.  Here’s to many, many more.