Our dear friends, Jeanne and Jason, flew in on Thursday afternoon and stayed with us until Sunday. We have gotten really close to them since we left the church. Jason was our Bishop in our Syracuse Ward. Markham was his executive secretary. I had served as Jeanne's first counselor in Young Women's a couple years before.
Unbeknownst to us, they were struggling with similar doubts about the church around the same time we were. We were on a somewhat parallel path of learning things we didn't know, things we couldn't reconcile, things that changed the way we thought and believed, things that ultimately led us out of the church. No longer believing the church was divine or led by God brought so many feelings - heartbreak, pain, loneliness, betrayal and ultimately loss.
Members just see the surface. They just see people leaving the church and might think it was on a weekend whim or a wish to be free from the obligation of belief. But it is not that. Not for us and not for the Booths. They are some of the most genuine and sincere people we know. We've found a lot of healing and growth together; a trauma bond or something like it. Leaving the church was devastating in a lot of ways and there are very few people who get it. The Booths get it.
Jason made a delicious vanilla cheesecake with a yummy strawberry glaze. We had a ball! We went out to eat, went to a movie and talked and talked and talked some more. We drank wine and laughed and planned our next trip together. It's always fun with them. They are building a new house that is almost done and we are so excited for them!
