A Little Reconnection

It's funny how paths cross and then sometimes "re-cross" years later. Unexpected events bring people into your lives, then they drift out and may come back into it years later.

Growing up in Park Ridge, Illinois I had two very special friends that I met in junior high school and continued to pal around with during high school. Karen, Barb and I lived close enough to walk to each other's houses, sharing interests and free time. After graduation we all went to different colleges - I went off to a small school in Wisconsin….one went to a small school in Minnesota and the other to a small school in Missouri. (Maybe the small school selections were partly a result of attending a high school with 4,000 students!)

We saw each other once in awhile over summer vacations during the college years, but drifted apart. Marriage, family, careers, moves…... our friendships faded into memory.

Facebook re-connected us.  Friend number one responded when I publicized the fact that my mother's house in Park Ridge was for sale. Barb came to an open house with her son and daughter-in-law and they ended up purchasing it! So I re-connected with her through this process and saw her for the first time at my mom's house for a walk-through. How odd - and how pleased my mom would have been - she always had a soft spot in her heart for this high school pal.

And, after more than forty-six years I just saw my second long-lost friend….stopping at Karen's to  visit with her on our way back from a trip to the Southwest. She and her husband live in St. Louis so we ended up spending one night with them. We parked our RV in front of her house, she walked out the door and we hugged on the sidewalk - smiles all around. Memories came back, laughter and conversation. It really was fun.

We'll never be as close as we were during those teen-age years but the goal now is for all three of us to get together for lunch somewhere around Chicago. Drifting back…..closing a gap…..remembering and sharing. Some of the best parts of any friendship. I look forward to  future lunch!