I had a friend named Lynda I've known since early 70's. We've been through so much together. We were running buddies in the 70's, party animals, then devoted wives & mothers in the 80's-90's.
She had Lupus. Fought it for nearly 30 years. Nothing changed between us, still friends, but our lives went different directions. We had a good talk in late January. I think she knew the end was near, as she also sent me a long letter.
I was waiting to get my car serviced today. Opened the paper, and there it was. I broke down, told them to cancel the maintenance & burst into tears. I had 30 minutes to make it to the funeral. I was wearing a tie-dyed shirt, jeans, & sneakers...but I didn't care. Her family didn't care either.
They said they had been trying to contact me but did not have a good phone number. It was a wonderful service.
So I have gone through very much today, I'm exhausted, drained and feel light headed. It happened so fast. I got to say goodbye to her....
Here's to my good friend, Lynda "Smokey-Joe"....I love you! WE will always be bonded!
God bless you as you grieve for your precious friend. These are always difficult times.
Oh I am so so sorry to hear about your friend. I wish I could give you the hugs that I'm holding for you. I wish there were some words I could offer you that would take away the pain. Know that you are loved, that you are in my thoughts, and that I'm sending positive energy your way.
Always, always feel free to drop me a line if you want to talk. Please take care.
Okay Spidey, I may take you up on that offer for some good old fashioned friend hugs talk. Let us counsel together.! Lynda would love it! Talk a bout a fighter...dear God in heaven, she had Lupus for 30 years & never gave up, until now. Lost her fingers, toes, a leg.....she still kept fighting. I imagine I'll be writing a tribute to her soon and send to her family.
I am also so sorry to hear this, donotfear. What a terrible shock this day must have been for you. Thank you for sharing a bit of your friendship with us here. She has lovely eyes.
I have a best friend like you - we've took sewing class together, Freshman year High School, '70. She is always, always there - even if we go a while - even months at times, between talks. I was diagnosed with Lupus almost five years ago.
You, Lynda, her family, and any lives that will grieve her absense, all have my prayers and heartfelt sympathy. I believe that after death, your loved one is ALWAYS around - and now you have someone "up there" to give a helping hand when you need it!
God bless you and yours.
Thank you for sharing your tragedy with so many. I know it has helped me realize one of life's gifts - like best friends.
May your angels be with you and help to comfort you. God bless.
Lupus is a brutal condition. My heart rejoices for her valiance in the face of it for so many years. Be rest assured that her spirit was strong enough and valiant enough to shoulder such a plague. Though in life it seemed to wear down a good sister, yet in the twinkling of an eye it has now brought radiance, glory and blessings to her countenance and very being. She is plagued no more and is now in the vast company of family and friends on the other side and now serves to advocate and cheer on those left behind.
Yes she is! I know she's laughing about the fact I had on the tie dye t-shirt today. Ha!! Rejoice, she's out of pain!
As I read your post, I thought to myself - How perfect is that t-shirt?
It's a little bit of a smile an otherwise devastating day.
Take good care DNF - I'm so sorry for you loss.
I'm sorry for the loss of your dear friend. I pray God's strength, comfort and peace be with you and all her loved ones.
It's hard to lose a friend. I lost one last summer, I had lost touch with her and hadn't seen her in about 7 years but it is still a shock and hurts.
What a way for you to find out, I hope you find comfort soon.
Hope you are taking good care of yourself. I also know your pain.
I'm so grateful for your responses. It makes me feel better. I just feel so strange....I guess cause it all happened so fast. I read the obit, I burst into tears, jump in my car, get to the chapel. Then I'm met by her family in the chapel who greet me with open arms saying, "WE tried to contact you!! We couldn't find your right number and didn't know you last name" (Guess I've been married so many times they forgot). I just haven t had time to prepare....found out about and buried her in one day within 2 hours. Just too much.
Be thankful for the good memories you did have together. Small consolation I know, but sometimes memories are all we possess of past friendships.
Peace to you!
May Lynda forever be remembered in these permanent pages also. I am so sorry, your pain I cannot imagine what it is like but I'm here anytime to listen just email anytime. Know some of us believe she is with you as we speak, she will not go far, bless you and her family at such a difficult time. We did however gain another angel, what a gift. Anytime, really
Kimberly
Thank you so much....this means a lot to me. You're right. She is here....and she loved the fact I had on a tie-dye T-shirt, jeans & sneakers at the service!! She would have shot me the Peace sign if she could, but she was too busy enjoying the company of others we know who have passed on. She was an angel, a gracious one.
Bless you Donotfear for your continued loyalty to your friend. I'm so sorry to hear of the loss of your best friend and the loss her family must feel right now.
It is hard to find and keep good friends now a days, and when we lose one it makes a huge impact.“There exists a friend sticking closer than a brother.” (Proverbs 18:24).
Please know that we are concerned and will keep you and her family in our thoughts and prayers.
I'm so sorry for you loss. What a way to find out. I'll say a quick prayer for her family and you.
I just cannot thank everone enough for being so supportive. If I missed a personal response, please forgive me for the oversight. Just know that any condolence you sent to me was well recieved!! I'm exhausted, but I'm wired to the bone.
Yall are making me feel better. I feel like this is part of the family.
Sorry to hear of your loss, DNF!
While we may mourn ones loss, celebration of what they gave us while they were here is more meaningful than all the tears.
Share the good things she brought to your life with others and she will always be with you.
Take care.
I second that....we were totally the Thelma & Louise of the 70's. Joined at the hip during the summer of 76'. Good grief, it's a wonder we surivived at all! I feel her presence now. She's still laughing about the tie dye t-shirt I had on at the funeral!
My heartfelt condolences DNF. Losing a dear friend is very sad. Since I lost my beautiful daughter-inlaw I have found solace in trying to emulate the way she was with my grandson, and the optimistic way she viewed life.
My grandson took a long time to come to grips with the loss of his young mom.
I smile whenever I think of her now some three years later, as to cope with the loss I made the decision to keep her memory close. Such lovely memories. Love to you from me and my family.
Thank you very much Earnest. I'm sorry you had such a trajic loss! I know it must have ripped you apart. I have many memories of Lynda. She was the most sensitive person. Dealt with really tough things during adolescence. I like to picture her sitting on her horse Gin-Gin galloping recklessly down the road! Thanks for the well wishes.
Take care of yourself well for a few more days, donotfear. You probably already know that grief can affect a person in a lot of unexpected ways (probably a bit of the reason why you're so tired today)...
What you don't know is (j/k) that probably someone snapped a pic, when taking pics of family members and friends - and caught you in the corner of one pic while you were thinking, in your tie-dye t-shirt, you were out of range of the camera...and you'll probably also notice you had TP trailing out behind your shoe or something awfully embarrassing but "Themla-and-Louise-like," to boot...and then you'll probably be reminded of your friend again and cry s'more and feel really tired...
And then.....
I've said enough right? *hugs*
stay well!
Donotfear, I am so very sorry to hear about your friend. I can't imagine losing someone you've been through so much with. You are in my thoughts, as well as her family. Hugs to you.
I'm so sorry about your loss. May God give you peace and comfort.
Annette, dear friend....my deepest sympathy. You are always in my thoughts,..hang in there ...she is at peace now....Lynda will be missed, but she is now riding Gin Gin across God's pastures.....
hugs to you across the miles...
Jan
I know what this feels like as well. I'm so sorry for your loss. I'm so glad that you have so many good memories with her. I'm glad, also that you have a sense of being bonded together.
Sending kindest and best to you.
Just reading this and wishing I had the right words to comfort and take away your pain. Losing a loved one is just one of those things where words are so limiting....pointless even and a silent hug is probably the best thing to give. But this is the only way we have of reaching you, so am sending you lots of love and prayers....
Take care and just think of the happy memories you made together - I'm sure your friend wouldn't have it any other way...
I'm sorry for your loss, I know what it's like losing a friend that you've known for a long time, it can be a hard thing. Just remember her and who she was, and she'll live on still in your memories.
Aww she's really pretty, sorry for your loss..I lost my Granddad a month ago
hmmm.. sorry dear. you shall soon get over it (I pray) and may she rest in perfect peace. Sad
Sorry to hear of your loss. What a great friend yo are to write a tribute. Keep your memories close to your heart, they will never leave you.
How awful for you to find out like that. May God comfort you.
by YvetteParker 13 years ago
How long have you been friends with your very best friend?What is it that makes this person and the friendship special to you?
by Croyd93 13 years ago
I really do love my girlfriend and i'll do anyhting to stay with her so would you please be able to give me some advice.I know what i did is wrong and i feel horrible and disgusted for doing it so please don't comment giving me grief for what i did. I might be only 18 and you will say this is very...
by StrictlyQuotes 15 years ago
After we broke up I slept with one of his best friends. Now we are back together. Do I tell him abou
by Abimbola Akinbuwa-Onwueme 7 years ago
What does "I love you, but I'm not in love with you" mean?
by Nell Rose 14 years ago
I lost my best friend today, and it's breaking my heart, her son was given something like drugs last year and he is now in a complete vegetative state, and my friend who always drank, has died today because of the stress and drink, I feel like I should have done something, I don't know what, but it...
by Jasmine S 9 years ago
My beloved Golden Retriever, Rudolph died last week thanks to a stupid drunken driver. We were enjoying our usual evening walkies then this smug of an idiot had stolen a car and was being pursued by police decided to crashed through the park and lost control of the vehicle and had it not been for...
Copyright © 2025 The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers on this website. HubPages® is a registered trademark of The Arena Platform, Inc. Other product and company names shown may be trademarks of their respective owners. The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website.
Copyright © 2025 Maven Media Brands, LLC and respective owners.
As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.
For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy
Show DetailsNecessary | |
---|---|
HubPages Device ID | This is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons. |
Login | This is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service. |
Google Recaptcha | This is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy) |
Akismet | This is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy) |
HubPages Google Analytics | This is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy) |
HubPages Traffic Pixel | This is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized. |
Amazon Web Services | This is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy) |
Cloudflare | This is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy) |
Google Hosted Libraries | Javascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy) |
Features | |
---|---|
Google Custom Search | This is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy) |
Google Maps | Some articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy) |
Google Charts | This is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy) |
Google AdSense Host API | This service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy) |
Google YouTube | Some articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy) |
Vimeo | Some articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy) |
Paypal | This is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy) |
Facebook Login | You can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy) |
Maven | This supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy) |
Marketing | |
---|---|
Google AdSense | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Google DoubleClick | Google provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Index Exchange | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Sovrn | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Facebook Ads | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Amazon Unified Ad Marketplace | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
AppNexus | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Openx | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Rubicon Project | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
TripleLift | This is an ad network. (Privacy Policy) |
Say Media | We partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy) |
Remarketing Pixels | We may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites. |
Conversion Tracking Pixels | We may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service. |
Statistics | |
---|---|
Author Google Analytics | This is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy) |
Comscore | ComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy) |
Amazon Tracking Pixel | Some articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy) |
Clicksco | This is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy) |