>What’s Playing on the iPod right now: “Remember the Time” – Michael Jackson
What I am reading now: “Getting to Happy” – Terry McMillan
This Labor Day weekend I met up with Elaine Johnson Farrar. All through middle and high school, Elaine and I were what the kids today call BFFs. (Best Friends Forever). This means we talked on the phone everyday, navigated the terrain of high school life and hung out at each other’s house. We knew each other’s secrets and all of our dreams. But as is sometimes prone to happen, life gets in the way. We haven’t really talked or seen each other since the summer after high school. But through the magic of Facebook, we found each other again. So, this weekend, we decided to met in Savannah, GA.
Driving down I realized that it’s been over twenty years since I’ve seen my friend. I can’t help but wonder, how much has she changed? The last time we hung out we were kids with big dreams. Now we are adults knocking down 40 years old. People change over time, right?
I arrive at the bed and breakfast that Elaine found for our visit. The Park Avenue Manor is simply lovely. Elaine hasn’t arrived yet so I get a tour of the home by the gracious host and I am immediately made to feel at home with the offer of brownies and sherry and freedom to use the parlors and courtyard at any time. I have chosen the Savannah Room and I am transported back in time when all homes had hardwood floors and big picture windows. I relax in my room until I hear a car door outside and go to the window to get a glimpse of my friend.
She looks exactly as I remembered. Her heart-shaped face and petite frame are the same. The hair, a twist of natural curls, is new but accents her grown woman style.
As I wait for her to settle in, I wonder will we have that same chemistry? Conversations over the phone were easy. Face to face will be the true test. Would we be able to connect the way we once did as kids?
I open the door and we hug like long lost sisters. All reservations vanish as we slip back into the rhythm of long time friends. We have established no set time table so the weekend is open to possibilities. We stroll and explore the historic streets of Savannah and get updated. We talk about family and jobs and adventures that have taken place in the space of our lives. Relearn each others likes and dislikes. Lay the foundation for trust to grow anew. And by the end of a weekend that went by too fast, I am glad that I came. I am glad I found my friend.
We make plans to make this an annual event. My BFF is back and we have the next twenty plus years to create new memories.
