I have been blessed with a multitude of friends. Being a military brat doesn’t hurt either. My friends extend from one end of this country to the other, and there are some lucky enough to be back in Europe. Big thanks to facebook for allowing us to reconnect!
My best friends have changed over the years as expected, and in hindsight, I have realized some that I thought were “best” undoubtedly weren’t. I have friends that I could call in the middle of the night to get me out of jail, and I have the ones that would be sitting right next to me asking what the hell happened? Ok, so that part was a joke but, I do have those that would help me with anything. That kind of friend is hard to come by.
I remember my friends from 1st grade, and I still have their pictures. I’m not sure how they made it through all of the moves I have made but I’m glad they did. The friends I had at Scott AFB, Illinois are extremely fresh in my memory. Cathy Knapp, Annette Mola, Scott Beasley are friends that lived on our street. There were a couple of dozen of us that hung together. Boy, did we have fun! We played from can to can’t! We would walk across the base to the pool and stay all day. The movie cost only .25 and would go as often as possible.
Then there are the friends from Hahn Germany. The strongest friendships were formed there. We were all in the same boat together, and we were thick as thieves. My family lived on the economy and not the base. That meant I did not get to get in all the trouble my friends did and when they talk about this and that I don’t remember, because I wasn’t allowed. It kept me out of the trouble that they got in, and I’m thankful for that.
Moving back to the states at 16 was quite difficult. The kids here in Alabama form clicks in kindergarten and stay in those clicks through life. They didn’t take too kindly to the military kids and I didn’t make many friends my last two years of high school. I have one friend from high school that I still talk to and that is it.
The friendships that were formed after high school were great. There was one I had while I was married, and it lasted longer than my marriage. Beth and I were friends for 20 years. My best friend now has been my friend for the past three years. She is in the military and just recently got back from Korea. Quynh lives in Maryland now and it is a good thing I love to travel, and I believe no one is ever too far away to see.
This is my journey…
★★★★★