There is a new round of friends finding each other on Facebook. These are not just friends you met in camp one year while you were a teen. These are the kids you grew up with. Some of us went through eight years of elementary school together. Others went through twelve years together because we continued on the same path at the same high school. Plus we all lived in a ten block radius of one another which meant birthday party celebrations, sleepovers, pool parties and countless nights hanging out with our friends. It also meant paying respect at funerals and being there for some major tragedies that we all lived through as a family.
Some of us were lucky enough to see each other last year at a reunion but some of us have not seen each other since the 80's. It's a strange feeling to be pulled away from the place that was home for so long and for almost all of us who grew up in the Bronx we have all experienced the "loss". I think if you get to stay where your roots are it allows you to grow better. A plant is usually not the same if you continue to move it around and I think the same goes for a person.
Colette Dolan is the "mayor" of our crew. She knows who is doing what and where and why and how. She stays in very good touch with us. You can feel the love of her little elementary school each and every time you talk with her. She also finds everyone. I think she secretly works for a group with initials that we aren't allowed to discuss...but she'll never admit to it. This weekend we got a message that she found another member of the crew. Immediately, we started a thread to say hi to one another and to find out how to connect. We are all celebrating or have celebrated the big 40 this year and now we are planning a little gathering. Who knew one little message would turn into a chat that went on for hours. We caught up and dug deep. We found the roots to our plants...each story bringing you just a tad bit closer. We cracked up a few times too. Similar styles of sarcasm and wit...Colette and I always "got it" when others seems to miss things. We also spent twelve years together. Twelve. That is more than some people even know a person let alone share so many milestones with. Time and distance took us all away from one another for a few decades but I think we are going back the other way. As the chat would wind down and thoughts of shutting down the computer would flow in... a new topic would come along and keep us there for just a bit longer. I realized at 2 am that only a few hours into Sunday and I already had my new thing of the day. There was one major difference in staying up late with a girlfriend to gab though...we aren't kids anymore...so in our heads we were at a sleepover AS kids but in real life we are old and WITH kids. It meant one long sleepy Sunday of exhaustion. It was worth it though...all of those little attempts at cat naps brought me to the playstreet where little kids found there way through childhood. Thanks, Colette, for being our mayor. Hope to see you soon!!!
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