After All The Years
I frowned when I received the letter in my mailbox on Friday. It has been years since I last received a letter via snail mail. Accounts and invitations yes, plenty but this was no invitation to a wedding or a party.
The handwriting looked vaguely familiar but I did not recognize it immediately. I had to open the envelope before remembering it.
We were born 1200 miles apart but by the time of my sixth birthday we were living not too far apart. I am a few months older than him but we were a year apart in school. We had not spoken a single word to each other for the first 11 years of our lives. Then – a story on its own – we became friends.
A few minutes with a person can change your life while a lifetime with another can have no effect on you.
We became inseparable. Not even the year that I was in high school while he was still in primary school degraded our friendship. We were partners in crime. I kept his father busy in the garage while he nicked the beer out the fridge and he kept his mother busy while I ‘organized’ some of her cigarettes.
When I fell with his father’s scooter and he took the blame but then I took the rap when he scratched my father’s new car with his bicycle. We stalked the girls on the main road and we climbed through the window one night to watch the battle of the bands. Together we scaled the fence of the municipal swimming pool for a midnight skinny dip. We were friends.
Not even falling in love with the same girl shook our friendship. Both of us simply withdrew from her.
When lovers split up it hurts and when marriages disintegrate it stinks but when friends part in anger, it is painful; especially for the guilty party. He said that he hated me and never wanted to see me again. I saw him a few times since then but pretended not to see him. If he saw me, he probably did the same.
And now, after 44 years, he wants to see me again…
Have a great Sunday.
Comments (69)
Yes, I will phone him tomorrow...
only I don't know what to say to him.
Many time I wanted to phone him but somehow I never got enough courage together to call him.
All I can say is I hope its good news.
I cannot really see it being bad news. I have sporadic contact with his older sister who had kept me up to date with the deaths and marriages in the family. If something bad had happened, I would have heard about it.
Welcome to my blog. First time I see you. Are you new?
Hmm, but I do feel a bit apprehensive. Why now?
Knowing myself I probably will ask him that but a friendship as we had will not be possible again. It was all or nothing.
Now I have other friends who are just as dear to me. Some of them for longer than 40 years and most of my friends also went to school with me.
Yes, I am somewhat excited to meet him again but I cannot foresee a friendship as we had all those years ago. Too many others bonds were formed. But them maybe he realizes that. We will have to see.
That is not likely but he may want his transistor radio back. He never bothered to come and fetch it after he left it in my room accidentally the last time he was there. In the end the batteries leaked out and I chucked it away a few years later when I got married.
Welcome here to you too. Now that we have two shades of red here and I will have to differentiate.
I don;t know. At my age I don't have a lot of new beginnings. I prefer to ride the small waves now.
Nah, I'll phone him tomorrow and hear what is in the pipeline. I just wish he said a bit more in his letter. It was a very short note.
Welcome and thanks for dropping in.
A great story.
No script was written here to play out.I will have to play this one by ear.
Great Idea! Why did I not think of that?
Btw. How is the nose job doing?
I have just discovered it a few minutes ago. Left my card there as usually. Hope all is well soon.
What do you mean by 'still'? I thought it was always there.
You might as well give it back. By the time the rain comes the internal combustion engine will be obsolete.
I trust your last comment was aimed at Zman.
Friends are real blessings. The only problem with my friends are the are trying too hard to get me married off again. I will do that in my own good time.
You have the same grand day.
You have the same grand day.
Consider yourself lucky. During spring, summer and the best part of autumn I have to mow my lawn every two weeks.
I suppose you're right but I cannot feel apprehensive. I have just completed school at the time of our difference and he still had a year to go.
I felt guilty at the time but as the years went by I came to the conclusion that he made a mountain out of a mole's heap. What if he still feels the same about it?
Frightening uh