We had endured some of the typical highs and lows of a university friendship - the highs usually occurring at the end of the final exam before the summer, and the lows when we received the resulting grades! On numerous occasions as we'd talked, our conversations had been about spiritual issues, and when the Christian Union held their mission week, Ruth attended several events. However, all this had occurred without her ever seemingly showing any genuine interest for herself. Since leaving university, my friendship with Ruth had continued, albeit at a distance, and generally by email and the occasional phone call. I was visiting Edinburgh and had suggested we meet up, as we'd not seen each other properly for almost two years.