New Year, Old Friends
Old Friends
Great tidings! Happy New Year! It is 2012 – amazing. It seems just a flash ago that we celebrated the new millennium. We usually don’t plan too much in the way of New Year’s celebrations, preferring to be cozy and safe at home, as in, off the roadways.
The year 2000 however, was an exception in that we traveled up to our hometown Greenville to celebrate with old school mate friends of mine at a party in a big barn at their house out in the countryside. The kids were small then and were snug at the farmhouse with grandparents while we adults stepped out. Twelve years later they are teenagers on the move and with New Year’s plans of their own, oh boy!
A pile of teen girls planned an enormous party, apparently well attended by close to 100 of them. It was supervised by a group of brave steadfast parents, not including me, for once! Yeah! Luckily, Austin and Lydia, who travel within the same circle of friends, headed out somewhat together at this function and were gone for hours!
The oldest teen, Kass stayed low key and had her boyfriend over at our house for dinner, watching TV and the likes. We went outside our usual mellow mode and had invited very long time friends of mine from Greenville – the ones who had hosted the millennium party, to come spend New Year’s Eve with us, which also included my almost 80 year old mom! I was delighted to hear that my old buddies accepted the invitation and planned to come. We go back a long way! As in I have been friends with Wanda since about 3 or 4 years old – we are now both 53! And, I have been friends with her husband Aubrey since 6th grade. They were childhood sweethearts and married after college. Wanda was a bridesmaid in our wedding and the history is long and deep.
Over the years our paths have been somewhat different and we go for months without chatting at times, but always fall back in together during any time of need or special occasion and the flow of friendship is as if we lived on the same street. We had a wonderful dinner of grilled steaks, stuffed mushrooms, chili, potatoes and a new eggnog/ spice Bundt cake! Later, we sat outside on the patio by the fire pit, laughing and catching up on each other’s news and stories, as we waited the return of two of the teens.
We ran inside at midnight to watch “the ball” drop on TV with Kass and Alex and sat up talking until the wee hours, literally. As a result, our plans to get up early, go kayaking on the river and then drive down to the beach to “observe” the Dolphin Dip did not exactly pan out. We opted instead for a slow and easy big breakfast and of course, more chatting! Later the guys did indeed go out kayaking on the river – the weather being so mild and we, the girls sat on the dock and watched, waved and took pictures.
We talked about how unique it has been really to be friends for SO long, dating back to even before school years. We literally could remember and recount the names of all the 14-16 kids in our first grade class, all of whom are still living and in the vicinity. We gave thought and comment as to how that is not at all the case with our kids now and wonder how it may or may not affect their present and future kin-ships, relationships, sense of depth, personal history and life in general?
In our more transitory, fleeting, technology driven society, will our children miss out on the anchor of long term friendships?
