Yesterday I spent the day in Cleveland with Jessica from How Sweet It Is and Ashley from The Edible Perspective.

Yea, I guess you can call it a Blogger meet-up. I mean, we’re bloggers, and we met up, but I think of it differently.

Yesterday I spent the day with two very good friends, Ashley and Jessica.

Just like any set of friends, we are bonded by common interests and lifestyles. In the case of Ashley and Jessica, those common grounds are things like whole food + sweet foods, exercising and barefoot running.

Above all, though, there is blogging.

Think back on the ways you have met your friends: school, college, church, work, etc. Each relationship is fostered in some sort of limited space where you may or may not find people with similar interests.

Well, that was until I started blogging.

Blogging has no boundaries and on this blog I have found that I can be totally transparent. And transparency is something that scares high schoolers, polarizes college friends, and may be considered inappropriate at work. Our experiences have taught us that transparency is terrifying.

Yet blogging has taught me that transparency encourages deep, meaningful friendships.

I’m a social person, but would never have imagined that I could show up to lunch with two strangers and sit down and talk like I was talking to my college roommates.

I never could have imagine driving two hours to the house of total strangers to spend the day with their daughter whom I have never seen before in my life. And I certainly never would have imagined that I would feel like part of their family.

This post is more than just how personable, friendly, and fun-loving Jessica and Ashley are (but really, they are!). This post is about a community of people who love you for who you are. Yea, I know some of my readers roll their eyes at barefoot running, or think that I’m strange because I like vegetables AND cookies, but that’s ok, because they still accept me and love me for who I am and what I offer—no matter how little it is.

This is a community that has showed me support when I have felt stupid and worthless.

This is a community that reminds me how beautiful I really am.

This is a community that stands behind you when you are under attack.

This is a community that lets you know that you aren’t alone.

This is a community that brought me friends like Ashley and Jessica and countless others.

This is a community that I owe a lot to—and right now all I can say is “thank you!”