Do you have any friends from childhood still in your life?
This is a great question, and the answer is “I wish”.
Some of my friendships from middle school, carried on into high school but didn’t last beyond graduation. They fizzled out.
My best best friend in junior high and high school moved to the US and has been there probably nearly twenty-six years. I think I’ve seen her twice in that time. We have each other on Facebook and chat on Messenger every now and then.
Our parents live in close proximity and a few years ago when my Mom ran into hers in the grocery store, her mom made a comment about how when we were in high school, her daughter came up with all the ideas (about everything I guess), and I just followed along. Which kind of annoyed me, to be honest. She wasn’t saying it in a mean way, I think our moms just had a laugh about her and I in the old days.
It’s not incorrect, she was definitely the alpha of the two of us. But in my adult life and as I’ve matured, even though I am easy going and more than slightly suggestible, I don’t just follow along with what others are doing. I’d say in most of my adult friendships, I am the alpha or at the very least, an equal.
So I kind of feel like I outgrew that friendship. That’s not me anymore.
Another classmate of mine, who I went to school with right from grade one, also lives up here (up north) where I am. So that’s kind of cool but I wouldn’t say we’re really friends. More like polite acquaintances.
She’s a very nice person but our lives are different. She and her partner never had kids, not that THAT itself means anything in terms of viable friendships but I think we’re on very dissimilar paths and always have been. Plus we were never really good friends to begin with.
I am envious of people my age who still keep in touch and get together with friends whom they’ve known all their lives. I would love to have that, but it’s not necessary.

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