Someone I was great friends with in high school but hadn’t seen for over 25 years recently moved a few miles away from me. We’ve gotten a chance to reconnect and resume a friendship that was rooted in a small high school (there were 40 kids in my graduating class) and it’s been a really great experience.
While we lost touch after we went to college, having someone who knew me back when I was the age my kids are now has been fun. It’s made me remember what it was like to be 15 again, all the good and the bad. It’s great to see what parts of people remain true to their core, and which parts mature and mellow with age. But it also affirms that the relationships our kids have with people now are important relationships that will come back to them when they get older.
For me, it’s made me take a breath and look at my kid’s friends. Which ones will I still have hanging out at my house in ten years? Which ones will I go to their weddings? Which ones will be lifelong friends and which ones are people that just pass through our lives?
Those moments from middle school and high school where we found out who are true friends were, and those who were not, those moments that make us cringe and tear up even today- my kids are experiencing these moments right now. I hope I can make some of it easier for them, and I hope they get through it with less scar tissue and more happy memories than most.
I feel really lucky to have great friends who’ve known me for most of my life still be part of my life today. It’s comforting to know that you can outgrow your immaturity, but still keep friendships and relationships alive, even after years of absence. That’s the blessing of good friends, and I hope my kids are as lucky as I feel right now.
Photo graciously provided by A. Strakey, through a Creative Commons license, some rights reserved
A few of my good friends from middle school live in the same metro area as I do. Actually, they lived here and then I moved here. It is awesome to have friends who know you and love you all the same. I agree that the friends our kids make now may be the friends who are there to help them through their best and their worst of times.
Congrats on resuming your friendship. Have fun!
I’m still friendly with some of my childhood friends, too. It’s great, it’s a whole different kind of friendship! When we moved to the UK, I was worried about the boys leaving their friends, and we have been encouraging them to stay in touch via the internet and Skype. I’ve been thinking about this lately.
Wow Whitney what a powerful and well written post. I teared up while reading it. You put my emotions about friends into perfect words. I think live as a whole is more than an awesome journey, and the meaningful part of it all are those we meet along the way. Some help us become who we are and stay around, and some teach us something while passing through. I too cherish those childhood friendships and in turn admire the adults/parents my friends have become. Thanks for that awesome post!
I’m new to GNM and was invited by Amy & Stu to write as well. I’m so looking forward to getting to know the other contributors to the site.