Wednesday, May 27, 2015

When Life Comes Full Circle

In high school, I had a small core group of friends. There were mainly four of us, 2 girls and 2 boys. We weren't the popular kids or the jocks. We weren't the Holy Rollers or the Artsy ones. We were smart, but we weren't the nerds, either. J, the other girl, was definitely my BFF. We spent hours talking on the phone (back before texting was a thing), hung out on the weekends, had sleepovers, and helped each other through what we thought at the time were difficult situations. 

Once we graduated, all four of us went in different directions - 4 different colleges; 4 different career paths; eventually, we settled in 4 different cities. Sadly, during our college years, the friendships I thought would last forever simply faded away. I really only kept in touch with M, one of the guys, but even that was sporadic and, admittedly, he was the one who put in most of the effort to keep in touch. (M and I continue to keep in touch, by the way, and are still great friends. We live in different states and don't get to see each other often enough, but we do get together when we can and our families have a great time together!) Sadly, B, the other guy, soon fell off my radar completely and, today, I have no idea where he lives, if he has a family of his own, or if he is still following his original career path. 

J, on the other hand, moved back to the town where I grew up and where my parents and brother continue to live. Although I didn't talk to her directly, my mom would occasionally bump into her or hear things through the small town grapevine and pass them along to me once in a while. I knew where J was working and that she had had two little girls of her own. At times, I wondered how such a strong, beautiful friendship could just fade away the way ours did. It was nobody's fault, really. There was no big disagreement or falling out. At least as far as I remember, there was no one big thing that cased our friendship to split. Life just happened and took us in different directions. Our connection simply disappeared like a ship sailing off over the horizon.

Sometimes, though, that same life that happened and separated people has a way of bringing them back together. 
This past weekend, I headed back to my hometown to celebrate my brother's upcoming 40th birthday. I had no idea that J would be there, too, but, of course, I recognized her the minute I saw her. Like me, she looks that same as always with a few years added on. As it turns out, her husband and my brother work together and have become friends themselves, so they had been invited to the party. 

For a few hours, J and I stood by the pool watching our daughters - my three and her two - splashing and playing together in the pool. I asked about her family and she asked about my blog. We talked about our 20th high school reunion that is coming up in the fall and whether or not we planned to go. We talked about jobs, and mothering, and M. I won't say it was like we picked up right where we left off - after all, we left off 20 years ago - but, it was great and, maybe, just a little surreal. 

At one point, as J and I stood there talking, her youngest, 4, was jumping off the side of the pool into the arms of my oldest, 12. It was really very sweet. They were smiling and laughing; we were smiling and laughing. My mom came over and commented how strange yet wonderful it is when life comes full circle that way. 

Sometimes, there are people who come into our lives for just a short time. (High school feels like forever at the time, doesn't it?) Even though they don't always stay long for whatever the reasons my be, they make a mark on us. They share moments and memories that, perhaps, no one else can share. Although high school is a time that I would mostly rather forget, I will always remember my good friends fondly and I'm glad I had a chance to reconnect even for a just little while. 
J's girls and my girls all together!
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This post was part of the One Word Blog Linkup hosted by, Janine of Confessions of a Mommyholic, Marica of Blogitudes, and me! This week, the word prompt choices were Soon and SweetIf you would like to join the linkup you can find more information HERE, sign up for weekly emails HERE, and/or join our Facebook group HERE. Every Friday, two prompts are emailed. Choose one and write a post using that word as inspiration. Linkup up any time between 6:00am EST on Wednesday-9:00pm EST on Thursdays on any of the host sites.




25 comments:

Melanie Stella Wright said...

What a wondeful post!! It reminded me of my own friends from middle school before I moved in NC as a 16 year old. So glad that you had a chance to reconnect!

Leanne@crestingthehill said...

I'm so glad you reconnected with your old friend - it may be the re-beginning or just a passing by but life is sweeter for having made the connection again :)

Janine Huldie said...

Aw, love that you did reconnect and definitely think sometimes things things like this totally have a way of coming full circle.

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

Are you still in NC? That's where I live!

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

Yes it is! It was great to talk to her again!

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

It was truly a little surreal, but lovely all the same!

Dana said...

I love that photo of all five girls...I'm glad you were able to reconnect. I still think of a few people I knew in high school...I'd love to bump into them and chat for a little while.

Angela Caswell said...

Meeting up with friends - old or new - is such a sweet time! Thank you for hosting today!

Nina G said...

Wow Lisa this was such a good read. I loved the happy ending and how you guys picked up where you left off (considering the 20 years!). I'm not friends with anyone in high school though that would be cool if some of the more special friendships made their way back into my life.

Marcia Shaw Wyatt said...

This is such a happy, wonderful post, Lisa. :) I'm so glad you reconnected with your old high school friend. Full circle moments like this truly are amazing. It's always nice to know and realize that things that mattered so much to us at one point in our life really did matter - that we can come full circle and still find our way back to that happy point. I'm so glad you enjoyed your time together. Great post! :)

MamaRabia said...

How amazing that you ran into each other again! This is a great story. I hope you guys keep in touch now!

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

It was lots of fun and even more fun to see our girls together. With social media, I think sometimes we thin we are still connected, but there is nothing quite like actually talking in person and giving each other a big hug!

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

You're welcome!

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

We'll see where it goes, but it certainly was fun to reconnect!

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

Thanks, Marcia! It was fun!

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

Thanks, Rabia! I hope so, too!

Tamara Bowman said...

Pretty cool that you got to see her again and that you picked up where you left off. I've lost touch with lots of friends over the years and it's always interesting to see them on Facebook - and to see that we still have lots in common. Or not! That's ok too..

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

It is neat to see where people ended up and if it's what you used to think they would become. :-)

Kristi - Finding Ninee said...

So wonderful that you reconnected the way that you did. I often wonder about my high school friends and don't know what they're up to which feels weird given that they were my everything once upon a time! Great post, Lisa!

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

Thanks, Kristi! It is a little weird. At one point, I introduce her to my middle daughter saying, "She was my very best friend when were in high school." Simultaneously, I wondered how a relationship that was once everything can fade away so quickly.

Lisa @ The Golden Spoons said...

Hopefully, this one will help me too!

JENerally Informed said...

How lovely! I love that her youngest and your oldest were playing and how it all just felt so right. I laughed at your reference of phone calls before there were texts. I remember my parents always yelling at me to get off the phone. Now we have to tell our kids to get off their cellphones and stop texting. Full circle, for sure :)

Chris Carter said...

Oh what a wonderful tribute to friends of a long time ago... and that amazing full circle we sometimes have the blessing of experiencing in our lives! I just love especially, that your daughters played in the pool together! This makes me think of my high school friends, and also- I would rather forget much of those years too...

It really is amazing how we lose touch with those people we think will stay forever in our lives. There are many friends that have faded into the distance of my life too....

Kristi - Finding Ninee said...

I've never made homemade ice cream but I remember my dad doing so and now I want to do it!!

Kristi - Finding Ninee said...

also shared on FN FB but wouldn't let me tag

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