Friendship and CHD

This weekend marked the end of an incredible school year for me as I finished up my junior year at Wofford College, a small liberal arts school in South Carolina. Instead of rushing home for summer plans, I chose instead to spend the weekend on campus, celebrating my senior friends with students from every class year who felt touched by their motivational presence on campus.

If exam week isn’t insane enough with studying that goes way into the wee hours of the night, the fun graduation weekend that follows is even more nuts. Running off of what little sleep you mustered Friday night, you are expected to keep up with the pace of every single activity going on around you, while not forgetting to pack up and move out. For any normal student this weekend requires a little bit of endurance, and I was worried that for me, it would feel like running a marathon.

Basing my assumptions off of past graduation weekends when my heart defect was causing trouble, I was scared I wouldn’t be able to keep up. However, I realized early into the weekend that instead of letting my baseless anxiety fester, I needed to share in fellowship with those who have impacted me so greatly as I’ve gone through my heart story.

I spent Friday evening chatting with sorority sisters, fellow classmates and other students whose college journey intersected with mine during their college careers. Their bittersweet smiles and excitement warmed my heart as I heard so many funny stories from their senior year, the advice they felt was most vital to surviving Wofford, their future plans and the influence other students, professors or parents had on them throughout their college journey. As I listened, stuck between being uber excited for the experiences waiting for them on the other side of the weekend and feeling selfishly sad that I would be missing so many of them next year as they went down new paths, I was reminded of how they had touched me and specifically, my heart story.

So many of the friends I spoke to reached out to me with love and support as I prepared for open heart surgery just over a year and a half ago. Then, as I recovered, these friends stood by my side as I challenged my heart, often times taking me on the adventures that showcased my heart’s new abilities to me and the world. Speaking with them, I was reminded and again honored that they took the time to be my friend, help me through the tough stretches and celebrate with me through the joyous ones. I realized how truly impactful so many of these women and men have been to me in our few years of friendship and, though they may not know, how much the kindness they showed me during the preparation for and recovery from my open heart surgery touched me.

Throwing my fear to the wind, I marched into the weekend ready to celebrate those who have shown so much compassion and friendship to me through my heart journey. Though it was not nearly enough time to express my gratitude, it gave me the opportunity to share the compassion they showed me through the support I wished with them as they prepared for their upcoming adventures. The love from their friendship powered my heart through the weekend, giving me energy to take on the activities and reminding me of the treatment that put past exhaustion at bay.

The graduation weekend instilled in me a sense of gratitude for the friends who have stood by my side through my heart journey thus far. I am moved by my friends’ capacity to love and care for those around them both before, during and after times of need. As these dear friends of mine transition from Wofford to their next adventure, I am thoroughly excited for the impact they will have on new friends, colleagues and mentors, forever grateful for the deep imprint they have left on me and my heart.