How life changes

As we move through life we need different people at different times.  For example; almost none of my high school friends are still present in my life.  I certainly was not popular and at times felt ostracized for different reasons but I had a few close friends that were important to me.  Over the years we have lost touch and so they remain in the past.  I have very fond memories but recognize that not all friends are forever.  

Some friends are forever.  Or, the friend that I didn't think was my "best" friend back then in high school, is the one that has stuck through the years.  We talk regularly on the phone, we have our famous "girls nights" and spa treatments, she was a bridesmaid in my wedding, and I know she loves my son in the same way my own siblings do.

Next we have the friends that I will refer to as "The mommies".  A small group that had babies within weeks of each other, one I knew a little longer than the other and our time together was filled with reveling in our pregnancies and then in our children when they were born.  Discussing our first time mommy issues, the aches and pains of pregnancy, nursing, difficulties with nursing, and celebrating the milestones of our babies.  I think of our kids as the "Three musketeers" and my 3 yr old calls them his best friends.  Things have changed a bit since we have all been back to work, but these girls are important to me and I make a concerted effort to keep them in my life.  


Another circle of friends has cropped up quite recently and quite unexpectedly. For years I had regular Saturday breakfast dates with my second oldest friend whom I met in university.  We used the opportunity to catch up with each other, check in on our lives, and experiment with new recipes.  Some worked out better than others :) One day she invited me to her book club where I met all of these fantastic women who I now consider to be my friends.  We meet once a week and I always look forward to the conversation.  Last week we closed down Shoppers, I didn't even notice the time going by.  Whether I realized it at the time or not, this group has become my therapy.  

I am grateful for all the friendships that I have had in my life.  The ones that have faded but are not forgotten, the ones that are forever and for the ones that I wasn't expecting but now that I have them, I wouldn't trade them for anything.