Girlfriends...are the best friends!`

Ruthie is here visiting from Texas. She and her husband
"G" (G-man, a nickname he earned in the Air Force)
will be here for another week or so. The occasion is
sad, she came back to honor the one year anniversary
of the death of her youngest son Cliff. A somber visit to be sure.

We got together on Friday and made a trip to
Columbus to shop at Von Maur. It's not so much
the time spent shopping (in my case, not to be confused with "buying"). It is the travel time to and fro in the car. The time that we spend catching up on each other's lives. Oh, we send cards back and forth each month, and I know that she thinks of me, but she is the primary companion and caregiver for her husband who has had a couple of strokes (you would not know it to look at "G", but believe me, he has lots of impairments that are not visible).

Sometimes the strain of a stressful life can only be shared with a girlfriend. A girlfriend who has shared intimate thoughts and seen the real side of you...and that you still are friends in spite of each other.

That is how we shared Friday. I showed her things she might want to purchase that were on sale. We laughed and sighed. Tears came a little and smiles too!

We shall always have a special bond, Ruthie and me. Even the 2100 miles of distance don't separate our thoughts.
(photo of Ruthie, "G" and new grandson late last year, Mason was born to daughter Sonie)