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Flashback Friday ~ Friends

It is time once again for Flashback Friday with Linda of Mocha With Linda. This is the meme that takes us back in time. In Linda’s own words:

This meme’s purpose is to have us take a look back and share about a specific time or event in our lives. It will be fun to see how similar – or different – our experiences have been!.

Participating in this meme and reading everyone’s answers is one of my weekly highlights. Grab the button and the link and come play along. Linda’s theme this week is:

Who was your first friend? Did you have lots of friends when you were growing up or just one or two close friends? Share memories from your childhood friends. For women, were “mean girls” an issue when you were growing up? Or were you a “mean girl”?! How did your friends shape who you are today, for good or not-so-good? Do you still keep up with your childhood friends today?

My first “best-friend” was Marlene Jenson. She lived just down the road with her 11 other siblings. I loved spending time at the Jenson home. There were always cold pancake peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to be had. And something fun was always going on. The Jenson’s moved away just after Marlene and I finished 4th grade. We exchanged letters until we were 17 — the last letter Marlene sent me announced her pregnancy and pending marriage.

I looked Marlene up when we were both in our 30s. We enjoyed sharing “remember when” stories, but our childhood was truly the only thing we had in common. In fact, we were so dissimilar, I was shocked. Neither of us made any effort to see each other again.

Lorii Kohler was my best friend from 5th grade to age 14, when I briefly moved away. I was only gone one year, but that year forever changed our friendship. Lorii and I did not share the same religious beliefs and she had gotten very involved in her church, plus we no longer attended the same school.

We didn’t have a falling out or stop being friends, but again, we shared very little common ground. We still exchange occasional emails and we talked on the phone when I was in Hawaii, but we haven’t actually seen each other in over 30 years.

Most of the good friends I made as a teenager I still have. When I just went home this past April Ann and I did what we’ve always done and picked up the narrative of our lives wherever we left it last time we were together. I also saw my friend, Warren, and it was much the same way. Mary actually lives closest to me, but we pretty much communicate by Facebook. Every time we try to make plans to meet something comes up.

My cousins are my most constant and forever friends from my childhood. I didn’t realize how very much I miss them until my last couple of trips home. This past April my sisters and my cousins and I stayed up way too late two nights in a row playing cards and laughing until we cried. It was wonderful.

I find that today, as an adult, my best friends are members of my family.  One of my highlights of the week is talking to Tilden on the phone.  Sometimes we talk so long I don’t get my housework done.  I wish we lived closer.

20 Comments

  1. Since moving back to Hawaii I’ve reconnected with a couple of my friends. They’ve been my friends since elementary school through college. I find the friendship is still there. I really miss my friends in Illinois though. We lived there for 35 years and those years of spending so much time together really reinforced our friendships. It’s hard to be torn in two.

  3. I enjoyed reading this. I’ve discovered that the friends I’ve remained the closest to are the ones with whom we share the same spiritual convictions. That forms a bond like no other!

  4. I have friends like that, too, with whom we can just pick up where we left off no matter how long it has been since we’ve seen each other. Most of those friendships weren’t made until early years.

    2. Teresa – -take a cold pancake, spread it with peanut butter and jelly and roll it up. That is a pancake sandwich.

      Thanks for linking me on your blog. I visited all of your suggestions.

  6. My oldest friend “dates” from 1951 when we were in primary school and she is the only one who still is my friend. I have some friends since a very long time over 20 years at least, but unfortuntately they got old, talking about “at my time” and have no other interest then they grandchildren. So my “new” friends are all at least 10 years younger, but I keep contact with my “old” once !
    I am very faithful in friendship.

    1. Gattina — my friends haven’t gotten old yet. I suppose that will come. I am noticing that I am a bit less flexible than I used to be.

  9. I can relate a lot to your post. The members of my family also belong to my closest friends, and it’s always sad to find out when friends have changed through time.

  10. i wish we lived closer too!

    but it is much closer than where you used to live!

    i have $7 saved up for a trip out there…

  11. .
    Your friends sound nice, Quilly. I couldn’t place the one, Suzy, who drove her dad’s truck and you sneaked around with her. Relatives seem to last longer than most too, don’t they? Especially cousins. One of mine, who is two years younger than me, is pretty fragile.
    ..
    I liked your cereal killer today. I am short on time as we are leaving Thursday on holiday for a bit. But I was glad I took time to come visit your blog tonight. You had a lot of interesting …
    ..

  12. Funny how we change through our lives, so that friends come and go. Thank goodness for the ones who stay! I have one best friend who’s been closer than a sister to me, since kindergarten. I’d do anything for her.

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