So what are you doing now, that you haven’t done in a long time – something you never had time for, or just didn’t get around to until now?

I got an email a few days ago from a friend in response to last week’s blog. She said she’s been contacting friends of long ago, adding that they now have more time to talk – about happy memories. She’s in her 80s now, and is friendly and cheerful by nature, so I’m guessing that her list – both of long-ago friends and of happy memories – is a long one.

I had a similar experience the following day, when I saw a phone message from a friend – in fact, my best friend from back when we lived in Roanoke, Virginia, some twenty years and three states ago. I made a cup of tea and got comfortable before calling her back, because I knew we’d be on the phone for a while. An hour and a half later, after we said goodbye and promised we wouldn’t let so much time go by between calls and catch-ups, we continued “talking” a little longer through some back-and-forth text messages. First saying how good it felt to hear each other’s voices, and how it made us miss each other all the more, and then sharing a few recent photos of our granddaughters. We each have one, and we both agreed on how adorable they are.

Is there anybody you haven’t talked to in a really, really long time? A former co-worker perhaps, or someone in a club or organization you used to belong to. Maybe a distant relative, or someone you used to be good friends with before…

You can finish that sentence any way you like. Before you had a falling out. Or before you lost track of each other. Before one or the other of you moved, or got married, or had kids, and your lives just went in different directions. Or before you simply got too busy.

The friend I spent an hour and a half on the phone with is someone I think of often, and I always smile when I do. I also always tell myself I need to call or email her sometime soon. But “sometime soon” usually just slips away. So I’m really glad she called me. It felt so good to talk and catch up, and not have to cut our conversation short and run off to a meeting or appointment or some other commitment. And at a time when every morning feels like my own version of the movie, Ground Hog Day, it made the day special.

So think about somebody from your past that you would really enjoy talking to. Someone who would likely be delighted to hear from you, and with whom you share happy memories. Then make yourself a cup of coffee or tea – or any other beverage that suits your fancy – and give them a call. I’m sure you’ll both enjoy it!

Well – what are you waiting for?

April 24, 2020
©Betty Liedtke, 2020

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