Friendship is a precious gift.

Today I'm meeting some friends for lunch. It's a belated birthday lunch for me. My days are filled with new, fun responsibilities and so are theirs. Today's lunch date has been planned long in advance. It's hard to find a day when we're all free. We used to meet for lunch almost everyday. At my house or one of theirs, the casual gathering for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or hot dogs was almost routine. We'd line up the kids. I can almost hear the giggling and talking at the picnic tables or in the little kitchens. They loved the familiarity of their afternoons, so did I. We made lots of coffee and tea for the moms or iced tea in the summer- gallons of Kool-aid and lemonade . It was all so special.

We were young mothers together. We met when we walked outside the doors of our new little houses. Those little houses that we had just purchased as newlyweds and now we were soon to be parents. Those little houses that seemed so large and difficult to keep up. We were new to lawn and yard work, snow shoveling and painting. We hadn't gathered enough tools to do much of the work around or in the little houses. So we shared. Some of the young husbands were very good at yard work and lawn care, we learned from them. Others were great at household repairs and fixing problems, we borrowed from them. Mostly we were all good at supporting each other and having a great time while doing it. We all grew up together.

Time passed, we began to drift apart. I went back to nursing after being home with the kids for 7 years. Soon some of my friends began to go back to work also. Our children made other friends at school and their social circles changed. Some husbands took transfers out of state, making our communications long distance and sometimes only at Christmas.

Today we're all together again. So much has changed and yet so little. We are all nearing or already at 60...yiiipes!!! That changes so much. Health issue are on the top of our worry list. Each family has them. Only one couple has divorced. One spouse has died. Some of our children are married, many are having their first babies themselves. They have gone away to colleges or become good electricians or plumbers. Our kids have become successful young adults . Sadly, one has died -that's even hard to write.

Today we'll meet and give each other some support and love. We'll remember how great it was and how lucky we are. It means the world to me that they are still there. They are there for me as I am for them. What a treasured gift.