#5 - Hillary and Anistasia

You guys don't know these people either, but I think you should keep reading because you liked the Disney movie, cool? (Anistasia if you didn't catch that :])

Hillary and Anistasia are two more amazing friends from ballet. Anistasia is my age, and I've known her at least as long as I've known Katie, Emily and Bridgitt, if you read that one, and we've been friends for just as long. Last year we were the oldest two in our intermediate class, so most of our friends were advanced (and boy was that a slap in the face), and not to brag but we were the best in our class, so we were always thrown together. Hillary and I couldn't stand each other for years, because she's two years older than me and I was always in her classes and stuff, but we became friends in seventh grade or so :]. This spring, when we were rehersing for Sleeping Beauty, the three of us plus another girl were the "third group" of twelve girls with the same roles as us. Basically that means we weren't the best dancers (if anything we were the worst of our level), and of course, nothing brings people together like being the worst :]. Last winter's Nutcracker was a lot like this, too, and at the Civic it was always the three of us taking class and hanging out. They were the first people I told when I realized I needed to quit and also the quickest to support me, because they understood what it was like being one of the not-the-best dancers who wasn't going anywhere. There was the God aspect of it too, but I never really told anyone that; I think they understood that there was more to it than being sick of Mrs. Meneer and everything. Either way, Anistasia's Catholic and Hillary's Episcopalian, which I don't know much about, and faith was just never something we talked about.

I'm not even sure if they're saved or not, and I haven't seen them since June (but let me tell you the internet is an amazing thing), but Hillary and Anistasia have taught me that people are generally good at heart- like, not before God because we're all sinners and everything, but most people want to be nice and help people out. I think as humans, we're not just created in God's physical image, but our hearts are a little like His as well. We're not perfect, of course, but people in general are not as bad as I think we can make them out to be. Most people care and are willing to listen, and most people respect faith, even if it's different from theirs. God has used these two girls to remind me that whoever they are and whatever they believe, every person is still His creation, and that He's a pretty nice guy :]