Friends for Life

I’m not exactly sure when and how it all started for everyone else, but for me it was my 7^th grade year. Coming from a small country grade school (where I had only been for two years), the large county-wide junior high in my small town brought a lot more opportunities for friendships. Little did I know at that time that some of these new friends would turn out to be friends for life!

On Saturday our group of friends spent the afternoon together as we do annually every spring and ate lunch together in one of our homes as we did each day so many years ago in the school cafeteria. We’ve been sharing life with each other for over 50 years now, and we’ve been getting together each year as a group for more than half of that time. Some in the group have known each other even longer.

On paper, it doesn’t make sense. We are an eclectic group representing diverse backgrounds and worldviews. Some have shared beliefs, but not all. We weren’t all raised the exact same way and we didn’t all take the same paths after graduating from high school. There are homemakers, a dentist, an architect, an engineer/interior designer, a nurse, a small business owner, as well as those in management and administrative positions. All are married, most have children, and some have grandchildren. We each have our own circles of influence where we live as well as separate family lives. We wouldn’t necessarily have the opportunity to choose each other as friends if we met today as senior adults.

But we met so many years ago as pre-teens and early teens in classrooms and in shared activities – and something clicked. Most of us had music in common, meeting in band or choir classes and continuing in the community Junior Music Club. Some were on school sports teams together while others joined after-school clubs together. We were all high achievers, and most were in leadership roles in school and participated in service projects together. Simply put, we are still friends today because our history with each other binds us together.

A lot has changed through the years. We have each faced losses and many painful as well as joyful experiences. Our conversations have changed as we have aged. Lately we talk about things like health concerns, Social Security, Medicare, and retirement. We share photos of our changing families and stories of life in our sixties. We now live in four different states, and all of our parents have passed.

Occasionally we are missing one or two at the lunch table (like this year), but they usually return the following year. The journey continues to be worth it because our history unites us. We knew each other “when”, and we know each other now. Friendship is a special gift, and I am grateful to be part of a group of strong and courageous women who have weathered much and who still want to be my friend after all these years. Until next year . . .