I found my best friend

Somewhere sitting in a high school classroom, I met a girl. I didn't like her. She didn't like me. Then one day we were forced to spend time together in jail (on a school trip for our Business Law class) and the mutual fear of being attacked by the inmates in the intake area bonded us. From then on we were inseparable Thick as thieves, two peas in a pod, all of the standard cliches, there we were. When circumstances tried to pull us apart we rebelled and still remained true. She was my rock and without her I would have never survived high school.

We had all the plans that friends in high school have - room together in college, get married, have kids at the same time and grow old together. Well of course, as with all of the best laid plans, NONE of that happened. I was unable to go with her to college and I got married first (without even having her with me at the ceremony - bah). She soon married and I remember thinking okay well that was a bump in the plan but we still have the rest. Again, things changed. I got divorced and she moved away

Throughout all of this we stayed in touch although never as close as when we were in high school. She moved back and was still married and I was floundering in bad relationships. It seemed as if she had it all and I admit I was jealous.

I met a man and fell in love. Hooray! Except that it was a relationship that I couldn't fully share with my friend. I wished for a way to tell her of my happiness but I thought that she would try to talk me out of it because I assumed that she wouldn't approve. It was then that we started to drift apart.

When my not exactly ideal relationship crumbled and I was in emotional fragments I still did not go to my friend. Why? I don't know other than I was scared that she would reject me (although why I thought that is still a mystery).

Life went on and I eventually met and married a wonderful man and began a family of my own - even though I was behind on the timing of the original plan. Her kids were already toddlers before mine were even born. It shouldn't have made a difference and we should have been as thick as thieves and yet we weren't. We were in different towns and different places emotionally.

Life, as it often does, reared its ugly head and a situation arose between my friend and I that I did not handle well at all. I was very high and mighty and judgmental and I decided that I wanted out. I threw away my friendship of almost 20 years because I was stubborn, pig headed and selfish.

Luckily, my friend is forgiving and she took me back - almost 2 years later! Even after our reunion, we do not see each other enough but we are in contact on a daily basis one way or another.

Life of course still goes on. My friend is now going through some rough spots and I am glad that I can be there for her and I hope that I am a help to her in some small way. I know that I have not always been a good friend but I am smart enough now to know that I should not take the

relationship for granted.

Tonight, my friend and I went out. Nothing fancy - just dinner and drinks (okay well maybe A LOT of drinks) and we had FUN! I realized that this one night is the first time in our entire friendship where we were together as adults, as moms, as women and most importantly as ourselves. We laughed A LOT and we learned A LOT and we were able to share things that we never before were comfortable or open enough to do.

Tonight, I found my best friend again. I am sorry for the lost time but I am thankful for the future and maybe just maybe if we're lucky, we'll grow old together.