My darling Sydney is 8 years old. She's the joy of my life. I watch her now with her friends and at times I wonder, "Could this friend be one she will have for all the rest of her life?" I have a number of friendships that have continued through the years... the kind that never ended despite distance and time. I am talking about the ones that go back as far as childhood...those that never ended.
I believe it's true that friendships high in quality do not happen by mistake. It takes much love, respect and effort, especially through adulthood.
So I begin with my oldest friend. Jean Ann lived down the street from me when we were in elementary school. We've talked many times about this and have traced our first meeting back to circa 1980, not much older than Sydney is now. So it is that with Jean Ann, I have the longest sustained friendship of any other in my life. I could spend hours recounting the Barbie dolls, the tears and the laughter and all those episodes of Love Boat. While I am not in touch with Jean Ann each day, I don't have to be. I am secure knowing that she is there for me and I know she feels this same way for me.
Next, the cute blonde guy playing Pac Man at the Johnson Corner Grocery Store: I met Fred when I was 11 years old. I could never have known on that day that I would become friends with this person who, in the year 2009, would come to my home in Texas and draw pictures with my child over dinner! He is a part of my history, and this friendship is a forever one. (He's also given me exclusive insight to how a man's mind works. I feel it is for my own good to know this! So hat's off to Fred for keeping me in the know!)
Now let's talk about Susan... who I met at the age of about 12. One night Susan and I checked on our babies sleeping in their little cribs/beds in the same room and a chill went down my spine in that moment. Isn't it quite something that this wonderful young woman who is one of the dearest friends I ever had is the same girl who I made prank calls with in 1983?
Kelly is the one I met for video games and pizza when we were 7th graders at Waller Junior High! Later, she was the one who drove me up and down Van Buren with the windows down, playing Van Halen and The Eagles... who still visits me in my home and who was there for me at the hardest time in my life...when my dad died. I saw her three months ago; precious is she to me. How could I have known that she would be my friend forever more?
Even back then I never dreamed I could possibly grow old with these darling friends! Well...here I am, 40 years old!
No, we never know who they are, do we? I look back now and I see what was there that made those particular friendships stand the test of time. What made them endure was moments of immense fun, laughter and trust, peppered with respect... and possessing the ability to continue to thrive even during times of boredom and personal growth (or lack there of!) These are the friends who do not judge you; they love you and they will not stop.
I hope many things for my child. One of these is that her life may be enriched as mine has been, with these kinds of historic bonds. For it is wonderful when you're lucky enough to share not only a present and future with someone you love all the way down to your core...but having that old history with someone: that's just priceless.
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