Today I’d like you to meet my best friend Erica.  I call her “Eir.”

In 2001, I met Eir at summer camp when she was a camper and I was a counselor.  A couple months later, we ended up talking at another retreat, and this time I got her email address.  What followed was this incredibly fun adventure of getting to know this bright, young high school student whose faith defined her identity.

It’s hard to say when I realized she had transitioned from being one of my campers to being my best friend.  There are so many memories packed into the last eleven years that it’s difficult to choose a moment of definitive realization.

Here are some of my favorite memories with Eir:
* our picnic with dear friends at the Plummer House gardens
* taking her to a college Bible study while she was still in high school
* crying and praying together that night at Moody Bible Institute
* ringing in so many new years together, but especially these last two
* creating and playing our own camp version of Apples to Apples
* developing a DYNAMIC long-distance friendship while she lived in Chicago and the Czech Republic
* years and years of camp memories, including when Eir threatened to kiss Sir William and all the time spent on the dock
* White Ribbon Day … huh?

Erica has such a beautiful heart for at-risk youth and for families in hard situations and for missions and for the gospel.  She is lovely, and she does things that matter.  At the same time, we love to spread a blanket over our knees and watch ridiculous shows on cable; we love looking at pictures of babies online; our jokes never seem to get old.  We pray for each other andwitheach other.  Just like Jonathan and David, our hearts are knit together.