Jaci Dawn

That’s my husband, Don, myself, and our friends, Kathy & Eric.

We were all at a surprise birthday party for another friend, Lisa. I conned someone into using my camera and taking this photo, but then I set my camera down and didn’t take another photo all night. Which is too bad, because we go way back. Not just Eric & Kathy, but the party girl herself.

These are friends that I can go for months without seeing or talking to, but when we do happen to get together, we pick right up where we left off, as if that period of absence never happened.

Here’s my confession: I am the absent party. Kathy & Lisa are always in the same place. I am the one who wandered off. I don’t know if that makes me a bad friend or a friend who had changes come into her life that make her an absent friend. (I know what Lisa & Kathy would say: they’d say it’s the latter. That’s how wonderful they are.)

Friends are such an important part of our lives. Old ones, new ones, long-lost ones and new-found ones. Real life friends and cyber-friends we’ve never met and pen pals.I hope I do not take my friendships for granted, but I am afraid that I get wrapped up in my own little world and neglect my friendships, real-life and otherwise. I hope you forgive me when I do, like Lisa and Kathy forgive me every time we get together.

I love all of you, my very dear friends. “Make new friends but keep the old; for one is silver and the other is gold.”