Gal Pals

My friend Katelynn will hate me for using that term.  OK... girlfriends.  Long lasting friends.  Sisters of a different mother.  Soul sisters (no wait - that implies that we all have rhythm, and after all these years together, that is still not verified).

Friends for almost 20 years.

We all used to live in the same neighborhood in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, when our kids were all very small.

I remember meeting Kris at a neighborhood gathering when she was pregnant with her second daughter - who is now a sophomore at Michigan State.

I will never forget Judy, walking around the neighborhood in her wedding dress with Brad, grinning from ear to ear.  And I distinctly remember looking down at my 10 year anniversary ring as they rounded the corner on our block, thinking that time flies by much too quickly.

There used to be 4 of us that got together about once a year to celebrate the good things in our lives, bitch and moan about the bad things, and hopefully take a new perspective away from the weekend along with a couple more pounds and a worsened liver.  (We're "foodies" who literally feed our culinary cravings to the nth degree, and love good wine pairings with said food with a passion the likes of which I've never witnessed elsewhere.)

Our 4th, Kelly, has not been with us for our weekends for a few years now.  In our minds, we've pretty much left her behind.  We used to get together and talk about grade schools and babysitters.  Now, we all have kids in high school, college, and applying for grad school - and we're able to appreciate the more grown-up things in life.  I know Kelly has kids in high school, but I wonder how she is doing.  Kelly drifted away from us a few years ago and no number of phone calls, emails and letters would keep her from leaving our little group.

Don't get me wrong.  I'm not pompous enough to believe that we couldn't be replaced as her girlfriends and confidants.  But there is always something to be said for longevity, for people that "knew you when," and for people that can call your bluff because they know your history.

Maybe that's it.  Maybe we know too much.

I don't give a lot of advice in this blog for obvious reasons.  Psh - I don't know anything special.  But I do know this:  Keep your girlfriends forever.

Love you guys.