Monday Memories My First Friend

I am joining Retired not Tired today in sharing our memories of our very first friend. You can join in the nostalgia with us and link in here.

My first friend was the daughter of my parents' first friends in the city where we moved when I was a toddler. Her name was BJ and she had an older sister, Nita, and brother Lee. My earliest recollection of her was at such a young age that I can only recall brief snippets from times spent together until we were a little older and in grade school.

BJ's family lived across town, so visits with her were when our families got together. I remember the excitement any time our Dad would load us up in the car with a "mystery" destination, it could only mean one or two wonderful things! A trip to the local amusement park, or a visit to our friends' home! Either one of those two things brought shivers of delight, especially if the two were combined.

BJ and me on her Dad's horse
I'm sitting behind her. 

Me, Nita, and BJ watch my sister Roberta 

cry and run away from us

We played and were friends who could always have a good time together as our parents visited over the years. My sister and I stayed with them when my brother was born and my Mom was in the hospital. We were often in each other's homes and were friends up until just before junior high. That's when things changed drastically. No longer were we just little girls giggling and playing, but were now very different. BJ was maturing at a faster pace and, having an older brother and sister, she was more interested in things that my sister and I weren't permitted to join in. At that time, we attended the same junior high, but we each had a separate circle of friends. While I was just beginning to look at boys with some interest in whether they might "like" me, she was actually going to parties and had boyfriends. Her parents were much more liberal with them than ours were with us. Because of these things, our visits no longer held the same charm as they had in the past. Due to these differences, we, of course, drifted apart after seventh grade.

The tragedy of my first friend was the way her life took a turn down the wrong road in her teen years. It still saddens my heart when I think of her failed marriage, a child left with her parents, the choices she made in life, and the final choice she made at the very young age of 21 to end her life. The question still lingers as to why. She came from a good home. Her parents loved her. I won't even try to speculate as to the whys. Having made wrong choices myself, I can only say how sorry I was for her that her life ended without being able to turn around.

Telling about and remembering my first friend, and finding these old pics brought tears to my eyes as I wished her life had had a different ending.