High school, life, and now.

I'm on vacation. I know I've written that, but I love to see the words. I took my visiting friend Auntie Sharon to a party of some of her oldest girlfriends last night. I met these ladies last year when I was Sharon's guest at her high school reunion. They were best friends in high school, that Catholic school up on the hill nearby, and can go on for hours about how "bad" they were, how they were late to class or spent their first class having breakfast at a local Bob's, only to be discovered by priests from the same school out for a bite. These ladies have kept in touch for these forty years since graduation and now get together for a girls' night out dinner every few months. Even the one who moved to Arizona took part via her cell phone!

I don't know how it is with men, but we women can sometimes laugh so hard our guts hurt. We laughed, giggled, chortled, and generally had the best time for hours last night in Robbi's beautiful back yard. Robbi is still married to John, who we invited to join us last night and who kept saying "this is a hoot!" while he was trying to catch his breath from all the silliness. I thought how it might have been to have been married young and stayed married, raising kids and buying houses and sharing hobbies and trips and adventures, all with the same guy for all those years. They talked about their trips and the groups they party with and I was delighted to listen, grateful to meet a couple that stayed together and still seemed to enjoy each other. It turned out that John and I graduated from the same high school the same year, can you imagine that? I told him for a Republican, he was a pretty cool guy and that I wouldn't write about his toe fetish. Don't ask me.

The other ladies were equally as wonderful. Sandy is single, works hard, and is finally going to Italy on vacation in a few months. She had talked about it last year at the reunion, saved for it since then, and now is going. By herself! So brave. She was so excited about the trip that it was contagious, all of us knowing that she would surely have the time of her life. Lovely Louise talked about how she and her new husband met, how their daughters were friends and brought them together. She's also a patient at my doctor's office, feeling well and looking very happy.

The food was delicious, the company beyond delightful, and I can't remember laughing that hard and for so long, maybe ever. I've grateful they allowed me to participate in their little circle of women that they've kept going for decades. I read an article recently about how having friends keeps us healthier and makes us live longer. I think this bunch might just live forever.