The Friendship

                  

 Senior year of highschool we road in a limo to Memphis to go to dinner, watch a play and celebrate Donald's birthday and our last summer together as The Friendship. That limo ride was hilarious and so sad, a wave of emotions as we laughed about past memories and we cried about what the future meant for each of us. We had the world at our fingertips, we were good kids and we all had potential to grow and flourish into adulthood. We were all going our separate ways in just a couple of weeks and while we were all excited we were all terrified. We were each others best friends, but more than that we had become family and life didn't seem like it could go on with us all being in separate places.

              Every college break we met up, we cooked elaborate dinners for our parents, we traveled together and we laughed a lot. When we were away at school we sent group texts and group chats and laughed until it hurt. As with all of us the more we grew into adults the more we experienced life.  We all had blessed lives but no life is spared from heartache, trials or pain.  From breakups, a cancer diagnosis in one of our moms, several grandparents deaths, a stroke that tried to steal one of our dads, trouble in trying to find a job, dealing with job loss, and the list goes on and on. Through all of the bad came lots of good.  New cities, a mom who overcame cancer, marriage, a dad who beat the odds, children, new jobs and then other new jobs. Through the heartache and the joys one thing has remained constant and that is The Friendship. Some of us have added significant others, some have added kids and while we have shed many tears together we still continue to laugh. We laugh a lot!


           This past weekend all of The Friendship, except one, had the blessing of traveling together to Chicago. This marks Chicago trip #11 and it always seems that Chicago comes at just the right time in our lives. In the midst of turmoil and stress we reunite in Chicago and talk and laugh and pour out our pains and worries.  There are times that the stress seems to be like too much and it is in those times that I am reminded of The Friendship and the way that these relationships are truly the best medicine. Blessed with friends old and new and always thankful for The Friendship!