Last night, we celebrated the last of my childhood friends to hit the 50 milestone. We met at Shoeless Joe’s first for dinner with a few of us, while we waited for the guest of honour and the rest of the party to arrive later in the evening.
I had a few friend groups growing up, and these guys I met through Ryan. They were the Caledonia crew and we had many fun times together from winter hot tubbing, to renting a chalet in Collingwood for a weekend which we remembered with quite a few laughs this evening.
I caught myself quietly watching on a few times throughout the night, at these dear friends catching up to celebrate the birthday boy. Through the various signs of aging, they all looked the same underneath gray highlights or total silver coverage.
There were stories such as how Ryan helped tutor peers who had horrible home lives and struggled with their academics, which in turn boosted their confidence through receiving passing grades, or how when a friend mentioned he was in town for his child’s hockey event, that he was surprised by a tap on the shoulder at said event.
Our friendship hasn’t been without its ups and downs in the 48 years we have known each other, but what friendship doesn’t go through such trials and tribulations. From sandbox pals and drawing competitions with our families as judges, to shared vacations and being by my side at my wedding, I know we will always remain friends and find our way through the bull that sometimes gets in the way.
It just so happens, their childhood home is for sale so we spent some time this evening going through photos of the substantial renos, as we remembered riding bicycles on the bare cement basement floor, lying on the fur rug watching C.H.I.P.S in the rec room, or playing pool while Centerfold rocked on the record player.
Tara and I both returned home with big smiles and filled with love. Now more than ever, this time with family and friends, is invaluable to the heart and soul.