Magdalena Sapphire Victoria Josephina.

She had a strong enough personality to carry such a huge name, but was down to earth enough to be simply Madge. Like Ruth, this friendship was suppose to fizzle out, but the Lord had other plans. Madge had a Type A personality that made most Type A’s take a step back. I am meek and mild when standing next to Madge. She would mistake my quiet demeanor for weakness. I’d spend the next 20 years proving her wrong.

We were partners at a summer job. It went great, as long as Madge called the shots. We attended the same university and only hung out once, as she shunned college life outside of class. After college, she lived near-by and we’d bond over our young professional lives. Madge moved to Europe; myself and another friend met up with her for a European adventure that I struggled to get through – Madge and the friend ran the show.

Despite our friendship, Madge and I were cut from very different cloths. We’re quite opposite in almost everything. I’m not sure how we stayed friends, but the Lord had plans for us.

Madge moved back to the USA and landed a few hours drive away. A familiar face on the east coast, we began to lean on each other for support. Those personality defects that were opposite of our own? They were what was needed in our own lives.

We fill the voids the other one has.

I do have a lot of Type B personality traits, sometimes I don’t speak up when I should and my fear of rocking the boat has put me at a disadvantage at times. No worries, I have Madge, who is more than willing to call me out on my avoidance.

Madge called me once when a loved one was amitted to a psychiatric ward, completely in tears and not coping well. I drove to see her that weekend to comfort her and be there.

I called her when things got rocky in my marriage: and when she stayed with us for a weekend, Madge confirmed it wasn’t in my imagination and I needed to say/do something about it right this very minute. She takes the time to ask me the hard questions and doesn’t let me get away with, “Oh, it’s fine.” She loves hard and her brutal honesty is needed in my life.

Madge’s house was my hurricane evacuation plan, and she was very upset we chose to stay. The constant text and phone calls of “Your life is in danger, get your butts and your cats’ butts up here” were a par for the course. Even though she comes across tough as nails, Madge cares a lot and will do anything to help someone else.

She had a rough year of changes and I made her a quilt for her birthday. She loved it.

I got a card from her not long ago, thanking me for our friendship over the years. Despite our stark differences, when we get together, we have great conversations and it’s always a good time. We help each other be the best person we can possibly be.

I’ll keep her calm and she can kick my butt out of complacency.