Dear Friend,

February 9, 2020
Day 1,230

My dear friend,

I've been writing and erasing now for a while. I'm not sure what to say, so I'm going to follow this advice:

"All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know." -Ernest Hemingway.

Here are the truest sentences I know:

1. I love you.

2. I'm sorry if I haven't been there for you enough.

3. I'm sorry that you're hurting.

4. Drinking won't heal your wounds.

5. I'm praying for you; it's the only thing I can do right now.

6. You need help.

7. I don't know how to help; neither does anyone else.

8. Your wife and daughter need you.

9. Your family needs you.

10. Your dog needs you.

11. Matt and I need you.

12. Please stop hurting yourself.

13. Life is beautiful, and you're missing it.

14. You think what you're doing is living, but it's not. It's not even surviving. It's just...not dying.

15. I'm thankful to call you my friend.

16. I want to be friends for a long, long time.

17. I want our kids to be friends.

18. Please think about your wife and your daughter.

19. Your wife loves you so much.

20. Your daughter will love you so much. She already loves the sound of your voice, I'm sure.

21. Thank you for being my friend.

22. Thank you for helping me when I've gone through hard times.

23. Thank you for being there for me when I needed you.

24. Thank you for many long phone calls when we were both having trouble sleeping.

25. Thank you for loving me.

26. Thank you for making me get on a plane and go someplace beautiful.

27. Thank you for buying ice cream when you came over after River died.

28. Thank you for making homemade pasta.

29. I'm sorry that I haven't said thank you enough.

30. Please, my dear friend, please get help.

31. Please go for treatment.

32. Please have an open mind.

33. The hard things we go through in life make us stronger.

34. I know you can do this.

35. Please don't be sad.

36. I'm rooting for you; so is everyone else that loves you.

37. Matt and I will come and visit you.

38. You are strong enough to beat this.

39. You have such a good heart.

40. Live; make the choice to live.

Tonight, I'm thankful for you, my dear friend. I'm thankful to know you and call you one of my best friends. I'm thankful that tomorrow is a new day. And you have the power to make that day count.

You matter to me. I love you.

Love, Christen