My best friend is 29 years older than I am and we've never met in person. Age is irrelevant to us.

• After I made a business decision that didn't work out, I posted a video about it on my website.

• My video resonated with a woman named Cyd. She reached out to me over email.

• Since then, she's become one of my best friends, even though we're almost 30 years apart.

When I opened my inbox in early December 2019, I never expected to meet a woman who would become one of my best friends — despite being 30 years my senior.

I'd been trying to grow my business as a plant-based health coach while paying the bills with my writing. When a podcast I'd been following touted online wellness programs as the answer, I jumped on the idea — and it failed spectacularly. I fell into a funk as I tried to work out what had gone wrong.

I realized my biggest problem was forgetting I'd become a health coach to help people, not get rich quick. I posted a video apologizing to my audience for being something I wasn't. Then, out of the blue, I got an email that changed my mood.

The email was from a fellow nutrition educator

A woman named Cyd Notter had found my website after reading an article I'd written for a plant-based nonprofit organization. She emailed me to say she was facing struggles similar to those I shared in the video: feeling caught up in promotional activities that didn't fulfill the intended purpose of her own business.

Our shared concerns stemmed from a mutual foundation in the Christian faith. We both wanted to honor God in our businesses and were at a crossroads as we prayed through what that should look like.

That was a big deal for me. At the time, I didn't have any close friends who were Christians or who followed a fully plant-based lifestyle. (In fact, later, I learned that Cyd literally wrote the book on the connection between plant-based eating and faith!) The unique combination of our interests established a strong connection between us from the start.

I quickly learned that we were similar in many other ways. For example, we wanted to use what we learned from our health coach training to help others improve their well-being. And we both loved cooking tasty plant-based recipes!

Our friendship has only grown stronger

Today, though we've still never met in person, Cyd and I talk on the phone several times a year — sometimes for over an hour. We catch up on life, business, and spiritual matters as if we've known each other forever. But whereas some of my relationships with older friends have felt like relating to a parent or an aunt, Cyd is like an older sister with whom I can be open about what's going on in my life.

I appreciate that she understands what I mean when I share the struggles and triumphs of my Christian walk and how I feel God is leading me. And I know she's always up for lighter conversation, like exchanging our plant-based recipes!

We pray for each other at the end of our talks, and I come away feeling uplifted, refreshed, and encouraged.

We rarely talk about age

When we met over email, I knew Cyd was older than me, but we didn't talk about it until one day last year when Cyd happened to ask about my age. I told her I was about to turn 38, and she replied that she was in her late 60s.

That 30-year age gap has never been a barrier. I would even say it's irrelevant. What matters most is our shared faith and the support we give each other through life's joys and challenges.

We've both come a long way since our first email exchange in 2019. I stopped health coaching and embraced the life of a freelance writer, while Cyd continues to show people how to live a plant-based life through courses, articles, and podcast appearances. I pray that God will grant us many more years to share this ongoing journey of growth and friendship.

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