A Heart Wide Open

Through the miracle that is Facebook, I recently connected with my favorite friend from back in the day--Karen Wiley Slate. We've been having a great time together after our ah-hem-cough-cough...--ty year hiatus. There are many things I love about Karen, but this one tops the list: She lives with her heart wide open and comes right out and says things, beautiful things like . . .

You are a dear friend.
It is a blessing that God brought us together again.
You are such a good writer.
I wonder if God has something in store for us to do together.
I love you.

Gulp. Why can't I say things like that? First? And she does it as easily as breathing. Thirty years can do things to people. Hearts can close up. Not Karen's. Karen's free-wheeling heart is a work of art.

And she doesn't just say things. She does things too. She made this amazing brunch for me one Sunday morning, just to celebrate our getting back together. Beautiful, huh. And there was fresh thyme sprinkled on the cantaloupe.





























John Mayer's, "Say" reminds me of Karen and the way she speaks her heart without fear.



Oddly enough, Anne Lamott's instructions for writing a first draft remind me of her too. In Bird by Bird, Lamott says it's important to write a "shitty first draft"--to spew out exactly what is in your heart, just say the words, not caring about eloquence or grammar or anything. Then you have something real and worthy to work with. Karen lives this way, but somehow manages to skip the shitty part, going straight to eloquent.

I'm sure it's a gift. I'm hoping some of it will rub off on me.

Long live Facebook!