Spades

The game of Spades is really quite simple. It is designed for four players- two teams of two. There is some strategy involved but really it is just a card game. Well, maybe not just a card game.

To me, the game of Spades is three to four hours of uninterrupted time with Wes and Cristal Kohring, two of our best friends. Our history with spades and the Kohrings goes way back...

It was July of 1998. I was getting ready to start my freshman year at Lipscomb University. I had decided to go "pot lock" with a roommate. I knew my new roommate would be at this orientation, but had no idea what she looked like. My lifelong friend, Laura, was with me as I entered the doors of the Student Center. I didn't know where to start to find Carrie, but looked ahead and there were two girls sitting on the stairs. “Who knows?” I thought, “Maybe one of them is Carrie.”

I walked up to the girls and said "I am looking for my roommate. Are either of you Carrie Jones?" The red headed girl responded "Nope, I'm Cristal, but I will help you find her!" From that moment on, I was friends with Cristal Beasley. We did most everything together that first year. She was the most down to earth, friendly person I had ever met, and I loved being around her.

We ended up pledging the same Social Group - Phi Sigma. It was during pledging that we had a Swap Date (two girls pair up and each one asks out a guy for the other one). Cristal asked Wesley to be my swap date. That was the beginning of our relationship. She was supportive of us the whole time and would always listen to all my lovey-dovey stories about my new man.

Fast forward to the summer of 2000. Wesley and I had been dating for about 6 months when he invited me to join him for a weekend in Knoxville. On the agenda - boating, swimming, and meeting his best friend and future roommate, Wes Kohring.

I remember sitting at the Benders watching TV, when this person started "flying" in the outside window (You know what I mean by flying? Where you put half your body in view doing the Superman pose and it looks like you are flying?) Anyways, it was Wes and he and his girlfriend had come over to join us on the boat. After the evening was over, I told Wesley, “He needs to meet Cristal. They would be perfect for each other!" Wesley's response "Leanne, he has a girlfriend!"

All summer, I talked about Wes to Cristal. I told her she had to meet him. He would be a freshman the following fall and I knew she would love him! Before she was able to meet him face to face, Cristal and I went up to the 2 Wes' dorm room to hang out. Other Wes (that's the only way I could keep them apart at first) was out doing freshman orientation things. My Wes left the room so Cristal decided to poke around in Other Wes' things. Sure enough, as she was poking around, Other Wes came in and said "Um, can I help you?" Awkward! But it worked. They started dating and the summer after Wes and I married, they were married.

Soon after they were married, Cristal started working at the West End Church as the Children's Minister. It was so wonderful! I think we saw/talked to each other every day. Many a nights were spent at each other's place for dinner or games. It was a blast to be able to spend so much time with close friends.

In January of 2004, I received a call from Cristal. I was in California and she was calling to say that Wes had decided to go into full time ministry. They would be looking for jobs, and one place they were really interested in was Colorado. Later that spring, they were offered a job at a church in Ft. Collins, CO.

I remember when Cristal and Wes were trying to decide whether they were going to accept it or not. Cristal and I went out to eat (strangely, I remember it was Amerigo's in Cool Springs). We talked about the pros or cons. I don't recall what I said to her that night, but I know that all I wanted to say was "Please don't go!"

Obviously, my talking didn’t work :) and they ended up taking the job out in Colorado. It broke my heart the day they drove away. The four of us had breakfast at IHOP and then they pulled off. I realized then I was loosing daily contact with my best friend.

From that day on, we have made it a point to see each other a few times a year. Things have changed: we moved to Georgia; they moved again to Texas; and we have three kids between us.

However, every time we are together, we steal away hours at night to play cards. Wes and Wes against Cristal and me. There is never a night we are together that we don't pull out the cards and play a "friendly" hand. It is during those four hours that we are transformed back into the carefree couples.

Granted the talk has now changed. Instead of talking about pledging, grades, dorm life, we now talk about jobs, kids, stress, and family life. And every now and then one of our little boys joins us for a hand or two.

Even so, we still take the time every time we are together to gather around a table and for a few hours, forget about everything else. We laugh way too much! We reminisce about the past. We remember we are still friends who despite the miles between us will always be close.

So yes, spades is just a card game, but to me (and Wesley), it is treasured time with best friends!

To sum it up in a dorky, overly done cliché:

Pack of Cards - $5
Snacks - $10
Four hours of an intensely competitive game of cards among friends: Priceless