happy valentine's day my friends

 

 I'm one of the fortunate ones, who have friends with whom I've now shared a life time. Some of this group I've known since childhood, others since my late teens. They've been through boyfriends, breakups, divorce, marriages, new marriages and babies. These are the ones who, no matter what, no matter how long or how far the distance will always be able to gather and laugh, create dinners and more memories. They are the ones to whom I know I can tell anything.  They've been there through it all. And apparently they're not going anywhere.

Whether it's sitting in silence reading with the light streaming through the window, or sitting on a cool evening, surrounded by redwoods and apple trees we're always able to come together as though no time has passed.

 

When I see photos of our gatherings over the years, I'm starting to see the effects of time and life. Each of us easing into middle age (beautifully I will add. My friends are beautiful in all ways).

*snap* we are 19 fat happy little college faces, arms draped over each other's shoulders

*snap* We are, in our early 20s having lunch at a cafe in  Chicago 

*snap* we are 25 in  a bar in San Francisco 

*snap*   30s camping and talking babies, one is pregnant. 

Now we are 40 something. We talk about books, religion, life and family. It's interesting to see how our focus changes with each decade. Our self introspection beginning to take a bigger role in our conversations. As always, with us, there are plenty of laughs because we are, if anything, a group who understands each other's humor. It is the joy that binds us I think.

  At the end of these, far and few between, weekends we gather, luggage at our feet, giving each other long savory hugs knowing that we'll probably still be doing this again in a few years. And that at some point, *snap* 70s we're going to be talking hip replacements and incontinence. laughing all the while.

h a p p y   v a l e n t i n e ' s   d a y   m y   f r i e n d s .