love leaves a memory no one can steal. 9/18/11

It breaks my heart when tragedy hits such great people. I’ve been so blessed to know and love some beautiful people. One of these people is my dear friend Natalie Hunter. She is one of those friends that is able to get straight down to the bottom of your heart. She’s a God-fearing, happy, complex, all around genuine, understanding, down-home kinda friend. She’s embodies home-grown characteristics that her parents instilled in her. She is undoubtedly one of a kind, and anyone who knows her can vouch for that. She has loved me through my worst and has made me better by simply being my friend. I love her.


So, naturally when I saw her name flash on my caller ID Friday morning… I was happy. I love our conversations. Their usually filled with lots of laughs, sarcasm, & reciprocated encouragement. So, I do my normal “Hey girlll” and immediately started running my mouth. When I shut up long enough to realize she was panting, searching for breath… I asked her what’s wrong and she said, “My father is dead.” I was in disbelief. No words to offer, just tears to share. How do you console something that seems like a figment of your imagination. Although I only met him once, I know him personally through Natalie's endless "my daddy this... my daddy that" stories. He was a good man. In my mind, there is no way her perfectly healthy, handsome, loving dad could be gone. While I’m thinking… “there’s no way” I’m saying… “I’m sorry,” simply because I don’t know what else to say. It’s tough and I can cry at the thought of it. I will never understand.


Natalie is a true Daddy’s girl. Something I always wanted to be. She is an all-around, through and out product of her father. She places him on the highest pedestal and his love sets a standard for any man’s love. He could do no wrong in her eyes. It hurts my heart to see my friend go through this. I don’t know how to react, what to say, what to do… So, I pray to God that he replaces her pain with understanding. The Lord’s strength is perfect in our weakness. We don’t know God, but You do.. and we rely on your understanding.


Through the hurt, strength shines through. In Natalie’s words,

 “My father provided me with unconditional love for 27 years. He has given my family a lifetime of love, and I am grateful for it. The type of love my father gave me, people only hope for. God makes no mistakes.”

I hope her words settle peacefully in her heart and I pray to God that the beautiful memories that her father, Victor, gave her is used as her source of strength and inspiration to live her dreams the way God intended.

It's blantant lessons like this that makes me understand the quality of life. Life is truly a gift. No need to ever hold grudges. Life is too short for that. Fearlessly love past resentment and give even when you don't receive. Love as often and as hard as possible. God is Love and Love is God.... embody this.

Please lift my beautiful friend and her family up in your prayers.

India Arie- Good Man