Today, I drove 45 minutes north of Victoria today to meet my oldest friend for lunch. I have known this amazing woman since she was 3 and I was 4 and through, first, our mother's efforts and then those of our own have managed to keep this friendship burning strong over 26 years.
My earliest memories are of L and her sister, C. We were very strong believers of faeries when we were little girls. We used to lay out food for them and build swimming pools. We would believe, and perhaps it was true, that the faeries would drink our water and eat our food. L and I were obsessed with Barbie. We had so many Barbies and could create stories for hours and hours on end, then one of us would get annoyed with the other and we'd storm off to our own homes, 3 doors down. There was no doubt a few hours later we'd be back for more.
When L was 5 her family left Victoria for Cumberland, a small town 5 hours north of Victoria. We continued to see each other every summer. I would go and stay with her family for a couple of weeks and then she would come down and stay with me. We would spend hours on beaches collecting shells and stones and then hours by the little creek on her farm with her dad's hammers trying to smash open big rocks searching for quartz - we never did find any.
We grew and changed in completely different directions - one was the rebel, the other the dancer and athlete. Whether it was our bond from childhood or whether it was just meant to be - we stayed close. As we got older we stopped seeing each other every summer but we wrote letters and emailed. Sometimes we went for months and months without any form of contact but the moment we saw each other again, it was like not a day has passed.
Today, we sat in the restaurant gabbing for 45 minutes before we could even think of ordering. I can't think of anyone who knows so many different facets of myself - who has seen me grow and change and morph into the woman I am today. She has been there for me through thick and thin - even though some years we lived on different continents.
Today, I am incredibly grateful to have this amazing lady in life.
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