I met Jenny in my very first class on the first day of freshman year of college.  We sat next to each other in PoliSci 101.  We discovered we were both Psychology majors and both lived in Jefferson dorm.  We were friendly on and off all year but we didn’t really hang out much.  Then sophomore year, we discovered we were both living in Wilson Hall and she was friends with my next door neighbor, Julie.  Julie, Jenny and I, along with an assorted cast of characters who came and went, hung out quite a bit sophomore year.  My favorite memory of that year:  Jenny, Julie and I stumbling down the bridge to Wilson after a night uptown drinking.  Jenny was trashed and singing Desperado at the top of her lungs.  While waiting for us to unlock the door, Jenny took a dollar bill out of her pocket and unfolded it like a Kleenex.  She proceeded to blow her nose into it and fold it back up like a hanky to be placed back in her pocket.

Anyway, Jenny, Julie and I remained friends through college – not best friends but good friends.  Jenny and I sat together at graduation.  After college, I had a little contact with Julie but she eventually stopped returning cards or calls.  Jenny and I have remained in Christmas card only contact for the past dozen years.  She still lives in Ohio and has 3 darling children.  Her mother in law lives in another part of my city.  Jenny emailed me and invited me to a holiday open house at her mother in law’s tonight.  I normally wouldn’t attend such an event in a strange part of town where I would only know one person.  But tonight?  I figured what the heck.  I haven’t seen Jenny since college graduation and I’m always whining about how hard it is to make friends as an adult. So why not risk a little awkwardness showing up a stranger’s house for a holiday gathering in order to visit with an old friend?  Jenny was always very sweet, warm and outgoing – I was sure she would make me feel welcome.  I was originally going to drag my husband along but decided to spare him.

First order of business was to figure out what to take – my grandmother always taught me to never show up with empty hands.  Too late to make something so off to Sam’s club for a cheesecake (why don’t we have any decent bakeries in this town?).  No, Sam’s is too far…a poinsettia from the grocery store will have to do.  Next was what to wear.  I decided jeans and a blazer is always safe – it can look semi-dressy and casual all at the same time.  Shoes…do I wear the cute and stylish yet not very comfortable red ones I wore to work today?  Or should I wear the comfy shoes?  Jenny is a mom of 3 small kids, surely she understands the allure of comfy shoes?  Nope, gotta go with the cute ones.  (All of that and I walked out the door in the exact outfit I wore to work for casual Friday – why did I spend 15 minutes digging in the closet?)  Last, directions.  Why do people live in that part of the city?  It is impossible to navigate and traffic sucks!

I arrived and Jenny looked exactly as I remembered her.  I met her kids, her husband, and some assorted in-laws.  We talked about our jobs, her kids, Sabrina, friends from college.  It was really nice to see her – I’m so glad that I went.  I stayed about an hour and then made my way home remembering what a good time college was in my life.  Everyone always told me that the friends you make in college will be the best friends in your life.  I haven’t found that to be true – my best friend from high school is still my best friend.  But I’m still in touch with some college friends and they never fail to make me remember a very good time in my life.  Life scatters us but make the effort to reach out to an old friend.