Friends…everybody’s got ‘em pt 1

It was the summer of 1986 and I was a little over 3 ½ years old. My mom, sister and I had just moved into an apartment (that my mom, dad and I still live in, but I’m jumping a head). I don’t remember much of that time. I think it was because I was (and sometimes still am) my own best friend (even though I do have a best friend). See, while I do have siblings, they are 14 and 16 years older than I am…so I pretty much grew up an only child. Anyways, we move into this apartment and living upstairs from us (maybe a few months longer than we have) is another family. A little girl, about a year younger than I am, her brother, about 4 years older than I am, and their mom, who would become friends with my mom.

Over the years, this girl and I would become friends. I would say good friends. I don’t know what she would say. We went to the same elementary school, but never hung out. After I went on to middle school, I don’t know what happened to her. I don’t remember. But we still lived in the same apartments. Summers we would go to Vacation Bible school at each other’s churches, we’d go to the beach, the park, and I’d even go to her family events.

More years went by and I guess we grew apart. I was in school, she comes from a divorced family so she split her time between her mom at the apartments and her dad. I didn’t see her much as we got older. Around 14 or 15 years old she really changed. In 1998 or 1999 she got pregnant. Then I think she was 15 years old she had her first daughter. I didn’t know she was pregnant until she was about 4 or 5 months. I saw her mom pull from the back of the apartments to the front. We chatted a while and her mom tells me “You’re going to be an Auntie” or something to that effect. That didn’t make sense to me. My sister had already had my nephew and niece and had her tubes tied. And how would my friends mom know about one of my siblings having children? Then my friend comes down the stairs. Yep. She pregnant. Wow. I don’t remember, what, if anything I said to her. Got an invite to the baby shower and the drama in my head started. There was this other girl there. Everyone was saying she was MY friend’s BEST friend. No that was me. Apparently not. At 16 years old I was hurt that I wasn’t being called the best friend. That someone else was. I guess I got over it, but not really. I put on a happy smile and we took a picture. The 3 of us at MY best friend’s baby shower.


(picture of a cut out picture) Me, friend, friend's friend


The following year, the baby was born and life went on. My friend and I continued to grow apart. She was all about her baby, which was good and I was about finishing school. I believe it was the summer of 2000. Right before I graduated from high school. I’d known this girl, who was MY best friend, for 14 years. At 17 years old, 14 years is your whole life. This girl was my life long friend. But she, her mom and the baby, who was now a little over a year old, was moving out.

That’s when I really lost touch with them. I didn’t hear from them again for months, though it seemed like a lot longer. Yeah I was invited to birthdays, but I hadn’t really heard from my friend. Then there was a knock on my door. It was my friend and her boyfriend (who’d I met a few times). Boyfriend goes off leaving my friend and the baby. I was so happy to see my friend. She tells me they’re getting married. Wow. She wants me to be in the wedding. I accept without a second thought. It was October or November and the wedding was going to be in December. Wow. But then, we lost touch again. Saw them the following summer. The wedding was off apparently. Then shortly there after got back together.

As with the friendship between my friend and me, we lost touch…AGAIN. I didn’t hear from anyone until February 2001. Invite to a reception? What are you talking about? Who got married? My friend got married? Wow! My mom and I go to the reception. Have cake, take pictures, opens gifts…then we leave.

In part 2: more loosing track and added babies!