DAY CATCH UP: Perspective

I've caught up with some friends recently, one I haven't seen in over 5 years and the other more like 5 months.

One is an old and treasured school friend. Now after my divorce, I left my past behind and didn't feel the need or requirement to revisit it. I had a new canvas to paint a new soul on and that's what I did. So meeting up with Yvonne was quite a risk for me. It meant that I was going to have to revisit the past and open up old boxes of memories that were  better left there - they didn't gel with who I am now.

So today is the day after that visit and how peeled fresh and alive do I feel after being in her company? Sure, we reminisced and it was lovely, really lovely. Last night's canvas was not a stocktake of who has done better than whom or who has the most toys or whose balance sheet had more commas in it.

Yvonne thinks differently to most people. A highly accomplished academic, she didn't give a hoot where I lived, how much I earned or what brand labels I wore. We talked about the things that really matter and uncovered all the things about our respective lives that we were clueless about. Lemme tell you, folks, if you get the chance to indulge in genuinely open-hearted banter about life, the universe and the merits of brushing your teeth twice a day, then do it.

Note: you can't always do this with everyone that crosses your path. Genuinity is a rare thing because so many people are trying to fake it until they make it nowadays. But last night, I was taken back to a friendship that I valued in my teens and, with life's experiences and good ole fashioned emotional evolution, I enjoyed a wonderful night free from all the bullsh1t of a competitive school reunion. It felt like sitting on a banana lounge on a beach with a lifelong friend, watching shooting stars and sipping margueritas. Ole!

Which brings me to Caitlin, who generously met me at Northland this evening to see my photo with my Mum, Gee and me. Cait used to live close by and play badminton with me but she moved and we stopped playing badminton (not in that order). It was SO good to see her again! Here again, is a no nonsense friend who tells it like it is. She would definitely tell me that my skirt was tucked up into my undies but then have a hearty laugh at me too. Cait is loyal to a tee and I LOVE that about her. She's brutally honest which you either love or hate and I LOVE it.

I appreciate Cait's loyalty and that we share the private things about our lives together and that she is a vault. Stuff goes in and never comes out. It's locked and you can reveal your purest thoughts and feelings and there is no judgement.....well there's truth, but no judgement and the two things are very different.

I love that we share a macabre ability to laugh at stuff that is inappropriate and also sometimes not THAT funny to anyone else but we see the bentness of it all (I just made that word up and I like it).

They say (not sure THEY really are) that people come into your life for a reason and this week, I have two very beautiful reasons for touching base with people that were/are very important to me.

Now I don't intend to itemise all my friends, one by one, and discuss their merits because that's not what this blog is about. But this week has been very revelatory and these two friends were the paintbrushes that embellished my canvas.

I've had some crappy mates, as we all have, and they've played an integral part with my decision to keep most people at a distance. It's just really REALLY nice to have moments that remind you that there is a genuine quality with the people that you choose to bring in to your inner sanctum. 

I was reminded of that this week and it's filled my heart.