Sweet Saturdays

I've decided to start this new feature called Sweet Saturdays. I was getting ready to write these sweet ladies letters before my departure from Okinawa and I decided that maybe a weekly post would be more appropriate since I do have a lot of people in my life that I admire and would love to write little letters to, but hardly ever sit down and actually do it. So now, each Saturday, 1-3 people will be featured and receive their own little letter from me. I hope you all enjoy this!

Here we go...

This is the lovely Katie. 

I wanted to publicly thank her for being such an awesome friend. Katie was there for me through and through during my first few months in Okinawa (and after that, too). You need a support system while being out here, so far away from family, and Katie definitely took over that role in my life. If I wanted to go on an adventure, she was ready! If I was breaking down in tears because I had a day where nothing went right, she showed up and took me out to dinner. This girl is nothing short of a good friend and I'm pretty bummed that I'm leaving her behind on this little island. We had a lot of fun in Oki in such a short time. I always think of how miserable but fascinated we were at the tug-o-war in Naha - and all of the amazing new food places that we tried while the boys were gone, with me always making you go in or pay first because I was nervous to talk to anyone. So thank you, Katie, for being so awesome - you have no idea how much it meant to me to have you around in Oki! I hope the rest of your time in Oki is lovely & you get to return home soon!

This is my beautiful wifey, Mariko.

She is the macaroni to my cheese, the biscuits to my gravy, the water to my ocean. Okay, I'll quit being cheesy now but, honestly, I couldn't believe how well we got along the first time we met for Starbucks in American Village. I was so nervous to meet up but I was immediately comfortable in her presence. We talked for the longest time about life and how we got to where we were sitting at that very moment. We've shared many laughs and stories. When everything started to go downhill, Mariko was there for me, giving me great advice and cheering me on to a better tomorrow. I've always admired her drive to help the environment and her obsession with baking adorable, and oh-so-yummy, desserts. Congratulations, Mariko, you've won the award for becoming a best friend quicker than anyone in my life has before! You play the role very well & I love you for that. Thank you for always being there and always making me laugh! You are quite an amazing person and I'm so thankful I got the chance to meet you. I can't wait for you to move to NC (yes, you're moving to NC...hehe) and own your mansion so I can move in with you.