Three Old Ladies?

Today I went to Salt Lake City to have lunch with two of my friends from the old days back in Burbank. We are all the same age and went to Burroughs High School together. I forgot to take my camera so I will mercifully be sparing you from having to view three not so young chicks. My friend Gloria Rokes Jacobsen was here visiting her sister and put this little reunion together. Our other friend, Beverly Parker Chapman has lived in Salt Lake for a very long time, but we never go to the trouble of getting together. My thanks goes out to Gloria for bringing us all together again. It was so great to talk about our families and get caught up on everything that has happened in the last 40 years. Okay, it would take much longer than 4-5 hours to really get caught up on 40 years, but we talked constantly and did pretty well. We've all had our challenges and also many blessings and have much to be grateful for. The Lord has been very constant in each of our lives and we each can see evidence of the Lord's watchful and caring eye.

It is amazing to me to think that we have been out of high school for 40 years. I know that it is something that everyone says, but I just don't feel that old. The person inside this aging body is still the same young person who hung out with these girls between class at school. I can still feel how it felt to laugh with Beverly at silly things. I still remember girl's camp with Gloria the year we bought matching clothes for camp. (How dumb was that?) Thankfully, I am much wiser, a whole lot more empathetic and just a much better person than I was then. But, it's still just me inside and I feel young at heart. Life looks a whole lot different at this end of life than it did at that other end of life. As I look back down that road (a road that appears winding and up-hill all the way) I feel a strange sense of wonder. I actually climbed that road all by myself. Who knew that I had it in me? When challenged, I became strong. I won't bore you with the details of those challenges, but I feel that life has made me a better person, and I am grateful that the Lord has permitted me to live long enough to learn many lessons. I hope to live long enough to learn many more lessons. But, I do feel that life has been worthwhile. The spirtual and emotional muscles gained in my steep climb up the path of life have given me confidence in my ability to do what's right. When I was young (I see myself at the beginning of the path, all pink and new and naive) life seemed pretty uncomplicated and I thought I knew what my life would have in store for me. Thankfully, many of those naive dreams have actually come to me in my life. But, there have been many, many more things that I did not forsee or even imagine. Thank heavens we don't know the future. Would any of us have the courage to live life if we knew what the future held? I am no longer pink and new and naive, more like saggy and aging and wise, but I like me at this stage much more than I did that girl of 20.
Well, I could go on forever, but my darling husband is home and wants me to come tell him about my visit with my friends, so you are saved from further electronic babbling . I'm afraid to re-read this and see how disjointed it must sound, so I won't. Love, M