Half a Century Catch-up

Coming from my last post . . . 

Separated by thousands of miles and both busy with a new family and career, my dear friend, Tits, who opted to remain in Chicago (year 1969), and I lost touch.  

But the pandemic dumped time on my lap to fiddle around with social media—and I found her!  Our messages, however, were cryptic as digital communication is not our default mode.  

Now that the world is back to normal, I received a message from her that she and her husband are in town and do I have time to meet them? 

Do I ever! 

For our meet-up, I wore the silver bracelet that was their gift to me as the maid-of-honor and bridesmaid in one at their wedding. I have treasured this gift, etched with both their names and wedding date. It was my first real jewelry, replacing my plastic and resin bangles. 

(Nothing is lost in the haze of faded photographs.)

That was also the last time we saw each other.  

Can over half a century gap be bridged? 

It can, in seconds—at this hotel lobby.  

We yelped each others’ names, hugged, and the 54 years went pffft. Beneath facial lines, gray brows, and prescription glasses, we saw our young selves and moved from there. How many kids now? Grandkids? What? Where? Who? Whose? When? Why? 

We exchanged laurels (for what else would you call Tit’s enchanting art pieces and my books), scrolled our phones for pictures, some photo ops, then lunch. 

The four-hour catch-up and chat flew by much too quickly. 

An old quote from the Net might have been written by us: True friends are never apart, maybe in distance but never in heart. 

What next? At this lifestage, I leave that to God's grace of serendipity.