I have the greatest friends, I swear. There's the one who dropped everything to endure three rough weeks in Africa with me. There's the one who met me with loving arms when I got there. And they both blared the music and opened some bottles when I needed them to.

One wore her watch set to South African time while I was away; one emailed me every single day, never expecting a response; one figured out how to text my phone in Africa. One drunk video-dialed made me hilarious videos for some comic relief.

One sent me lots of handwritten real mail; one loaned me a GPS that helped me forrest-gump my way through Johannesburg. One gave me an evening of laughter in exchange for kicking my ace in Wii boxing.

Many sent me love notes through email and Facebook just to let me know I'm being thought of. Many prayed for me every day. Many sent me reminders that "they've got me". Many left comments on the Grit, even though I hadn't posted anything new. Many stood with me, ignoring the ocean that was physically in the way.

Yeah. I've got the greatest friends.

And it humbles me.

Greatly.