A high school friend I hadn’t spoken to in over five years reached out to this me this week. A bit randomly, but wanting to catch up now that I was back in Wisconsin so we hopped on a Zoom call last night.
I didn’t have an abidance of close high school friends — I found “my people” in college — but I’d always gotten along with this friend. I think we both felt on the outside in a lot of ways but then also thought the other one was really cool. I don’t get a lot of nostalgia for high school (like, ever, zero nostalgia), but it was so good to see her thriving in her life now and see that I really am too, all things considered. There was so much more out there for us to become who we actually were, rather than boxed in by our small homogenous town.
We reminisced a bit, talked about who we were still in touch with (both of us only a couple people), and learned about each other’s moves and jobs (we’re both in HR). There was light for future friendship too, now that I’m in the state and once the pandemic is over (someday).
All this to say, I’m feeling really grateful for old friends tonight. Whether I’ve stayed in touch with them or not. Friends who held space for another during a period of our lives where no one was their best selves. I hope they’re all doing well. I hope they’ve found their way.
With Love,
Natalie