Welcome Home.

I remember dropping him off at the airport.
I gave him one last hug and told him I loved him.
In that moment, two years seemed like a lifetime to wait.

But as he made it to the bottom of the escalator and dropped his bags to run and give me a hug, it was as if those two years had flown by.
He held me tight and through each of our tears we spoke our first words in over two years.

I can't describe the feelings of seeing one of your best friends again after two years apart, but it's wonderful.

All I can is,
I missed you Zack.

I missed your smile.
Your refusal to take a normal picture.
Your contagious laugh.
I've missed your enthusiastic love of life.
I've missed our talks.
Really, I missed everything about you.

I am so excited for you to be home again.
And I am so grateful for you and for you dedication to the Lord these last two years.
Your obedience and hard work was a blessing to me, and I can't thank you enough.

I love you Zack.
Welcome home.

Love always,

Samantha Dru

This is the way it should be.

Ever since I was a little girl, I had my personal fairytale all planned out.

The story I had planned for myself was the perfectly cliche story that's in all the movies.

My once upon a time would begin (at a ball, or anywhere I could dress up like a princess, I'm not picky), when I'd see him, he'd see me, and we would know there was something special there.

Maybe it wouldn't be love at first sight, but it wouldn't take long before I'd know he was the one.

About three days later we'd decide to make it a "happily ever after."

In my mind, this was the perfect story (however far fetched or unreasonable it may be), and I couldn't imagine anything better.

Until now.

My story wasn't what I had always planned on.
It's better.

It all got started on December 5th with an avocado in the self-checkout line and talking until 3:30 in the morning.

And from that moment on, everything has changed.

He has me mixing up the days of the week, and I have missed more classes than I care to admit.
Because of him I'm always smiling like a complete idiot, no matter what.
He is always on my mind.
I'm either with him or thinking about him when we're not together.
And all I ever think about is how amazing my life is with him in it.
He's made me a better person.
I've learned to care more,
I've learned to let go and just enjoy life as it is.
I've found that there are people in this world worth trusting.
I'm slowly starting to let go of my stubborn independence and let myself depend on him.
Ive come to the point that his happiness is the most important thing to me, and seeing him happy is what makes me happy.
I have found that all my weird rules and quirks don't apply to him.
And what used to be important to me just isn't anymore.
Now my favorite thing to do is just sit with his arms wrapped around me talking about life, sometimes talking about nothing at all.
He's helped me see that life is wonderful and worth living.
He makes me laugh, I mean the uncontrollable, make my stomach hurt kind of laughing.
He makes me feel like I can be myself all the time.
He makes me happier than I ever thought I could be.

And after all of this, I've realized that he has my whole heart, and I have fallen completely, head over heels, perfectly, and wonderfully, in love.

So my fairytale wasn't what I expected.
But this is the way it should be.

Sincerely,

Samantha Dru

This is what you left me

Today, February 5th 2015, the world lost an amazing person.

An amazing father, brother, son, husband, grandfather, and friend.

It hurts, and already I miss him more than words can express.
I will mis the way he laughs.
I'll miss his southern accent that is only there half the time.
I'll miss him teaching me how to survive in the country.
I'll miss his unwavering kindness and love.
And I will miss being called "princess."
I will miss everything about him.
But he left so much to those he left behind.

From you, Grandpa, I learned the importance of forgiveness and moving on.
I learned kindness.
I learned that if I have a goal, I need to work hard until I achieve it.
I learned to stand true and faithful to what I believe.
I learned to never take the easy way out, no matter how hard life gets.
I learned how important it is to always express love and gratitude.
And I learned that losing someone you love hurts so bad, and that is a wonderful, beautiful, and sacred thing.

This is what you left me.

I love you Grandpa.
I will always love you.
And I'll forward to the day we will be together again.

Sincerely, 

Samantha Dru

Sweet 16.

Happy Birthday Chase!(:

I just can't believe it.
16 years old.

Watching you grow up and become the young man you are today has been one of my greatest blessings and privileges!
You're amazing in every which way!

You are kind,
Considerate,
Thoughtful,
Patient,
Genuine,
Loving,
Smart,
Hilarious (honestly you are the funniest person I know),
Talented,
And the most amazing friend and brother (:

I love you more than you will ever know!
You have been my best friend since the beginning.
We have done bizarre things together,
And we have so many wonderful memories (:

Enjoy being 16 Chase!
And don't get pulled over,
Don't crash your car,
Go on lots of dates,
But know that I'll kill you if you kiss too many girls(;

I love you!
Happy Birthday!(:

Sincerely 

Samantha Dru

He is.

The Anointed One.

Lord Almighty.

The only Begotten.

The Chosen.

Comforter.

Healer.

Counselor.

Creator.

Deliverer.

The Good Shepherd.

The Light of the world.

Mediator.

Prince of Peace.

Savior.

Redeemer.

Teacher.

I love Christmas.

I am honored to be able to set aside one day a year to celebrate my Beloved Savior.

He is the reason I have every blessing, moment of happiness, and good thing in my life.

And He does so much for me.

There are many names in the scriptures used to describe Jesus Christ, and as I thought about all the different names of the Savior, I realized something...

All these names are not only who He is, but they are all what He does.

He comforts me.

He heals me.

He teaches me.

He guides me.

He counsels me.

He loves me.

He has redeemed me.

He saves me.

He is my everything.

What a wonderful thing to celebrate Him today.

My Savior, Brother, Redeemer, and Friend.

It is my privilege to celebrate You.

Sincerely,

Samantha Dru

I made it.

I made it.
I survived my first semester of college.
I would most definitely call that a success.

I moved in with five girls.
Clothes went missing.
I was constantly out of food.
There were tears.
And meltdowns.
And a lot of inside jokes created.

I bought and wore a BYU shirt.
I went to a BYU football game...
And I even cheered for the Cougars (not my proudest moment).

I made it to all my 7 am classes.
And only missed a couple others.
And I realized that unlike high school, college takes some work.

I screamed at a poor, innocent and very handsome jogger.
I also may have kissed an unknown (but adorable) boy on the side of the road.
And other than that had a completely nonexistent love-life.

I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning far too many times.
And I was usually running on 3-4 hours of sleep.
But don't worry, somehow I managed to never fall asleep in class.

I learned a lot,
And it was hard,
Exhausting,
Unexpected,
And absolutely the best 5 months ever!

I made it.

Sincerely,

Samantha Dru

Speak.

20,000.
On average, that's how many words humans speak per day.
When I first heard this, that seemed like a lot of words,
But then I realized it doesn't take many words to lift someone up,
To help heal a wounded heart,
To make someone feel loved, appreciated,
To make someone feel worth it.
But just the same, it doesn't take many words to tear someone down,
To hurt another,
To wound or to destroy.

What words do I speak?
Do I speak words that spreads positivity and joy?
Do I speak words that make others feel loved, needed, and appreciated?
Do my words give comfort, healing, and strength?
Do I use words that share truth?

There may be a lot of things in life that are completely out of my control, but I choose every word that comes out of my mouth.
And if I get to choose the words I speak, I will choose to speak words that make the world a better place.

I will speak.
Speak love.
Speak comfort.
Speak strength.
Speak healing.
Speak goodness.
Speak truth.

Sincerely,

Samantha Dru