Sunday, April 14: I have been struggling for three days now to come up with something for the WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge: Change. I first thought I would post a picture of my children and how they have changed, but I realized that would take hundreds of pictures. Then I thought of posting about how my life has changed since I decided to live and work abroad, and still, that would have taken too many pictures. I thought of posting one photo of me in my graduation gown accepting my Master of Arts degree. Or at my first wedding. Or my second. Or, I could have posted pictures of the change of seasons, flowers growing, leaves dying, snow falling. The possibilities were endless.
The problem, of course, is that EVERYTHING CHANGES. Every minute of every day, change happens.
Finally, after spending hours looking through my archives for something that would inspire me, I decided to show something that is ALWAYS changing but NEVER changing. This is my friendship with four women, Louise, Martha, Rosie and Charlene, that has spanned decades. Four of us met in 6th grade, in 1966, when my family moved to Yorktown, Virginia and I attended Yorktown Elementary School for the first time. I moved from the “big city” of Newport News to the rural Yorktown, and it was a rude awakening. I arrived on the scene wearing a plaid dress with layers of crinoline, delicate lace-bordered ankle socks and patent leather shoes. The girls I met at Yorktown Elementary wore A-line skirts, button-down shirts, athletic socks and tennis shoes. My friend Louise always tells me she can never get that picture out of her mind of me arriving in that dress with those black shiny shoes.
Louise & Martha have been my friends since that time. I was elected to be Vice-President of the SCA (Student Cooperative Association) in 6th grade, and Rosie was elected President.

I’m on the left as Vice-President of the SCA, and Rosie, second from the left, was President.
When we merged with another elementary school in 7th grade, at Yorktown Intermediate School, we met Charlene. Though I had known Rosie ever since I arrived in 6th grade, our friendship didn’t solidify until we were in 10th grade, at York High School. Since then, the five of us have been good friends.

Yearbook staff at York High School: bottom row: Louise, Rosie, me, Martha, and Charlene standing back, second from the right.

Rosie, Josh, and Charlene in 1973

Rosie, Martha, me and Louise at a party in 1973

me, Rosie, Louise and Charlene at Lake Gaston, 1973

partying in 1974. I’m the one with my mouth open. Rosie’s sitting beside me

Building pyramids at York High School, 1974. Me top tier on right, Charlene and Louise middle tier on left.

Charlene, Mickey Mouse and Rosie at Disney World, Spring 1974

me, Donald Duck and Louise at Disney World in Florida on our senior class trip

Louise and Gary, me and Paul in 1974
We have each constantly changed: married, divorced, had children, had grandchildren (except me), and moved to different parts of the country and the world.

At Charlene’s bachelorette party: Rosie, Louise, Charlene and me

me and Louise (and our mothers) at Charlene’s wedding
Our bodies have gotten older and chubbier. Yet. Despite all the changes we have gone through, one thing has remained constant: our friendship. Despite 40 years, we are still best of friends. Whenever we get together, it as if nothing has changed, even though, in reality, EVERYTHING has changed.

Louise, me and Charlene in New York City

Rosie and Charlene in New York City

me, Rosie, Charlene and Louise in Yorktown, September 2007

Louise, Charlene, me and Rosie in Yorktown in February 2009

Rosie, Louise, Martha and me in Yorktown in April 2009

Charlene, Rosie and me in Yorktown in June 2009

Rosie, me and Martha at Rosie’s brother’s house in August 2009

Charlene, me, Rosie and Martha in May 2011

Louise, Rosie, me, Martha and Charlene in May 2011

Martha, me and Rosie in front, May 2011 at a York High School reunion. (Standing in front of a port-a-potty, not the best choice for a photo!)
I know without a doubt that our friendship will be something we’ll have for the rest of our lives. 🙂
Wonderful and I’m happy to say that I have friendships like this as well! The men may come and go but our girlfriends are forever 🙂
You are so right, Gilly. I’m glad you have friendships like these too. You hit the nail right on the head. 🙂
What a great collection of photos!
Thanks so much, Elaine!
What a great collection of photographs and good memories of your friendship!
Thanks so much, Syed. I’m blessed to have these amazing friends. 🙂
This was great! Thanks for sharing! I wish I knew all of you in high school. I did not join your graduating class until January 1973. Up until that I was a Junior. I graduated with all of you in the end of my Junior year. I worked real hard to get out of school that year. I loved the trip to Disneyland with all of you, but it was a hard trip for me as I really did not know anyone real well. One day I would love to meet up with all of you and see if I could mesh into your group too. Take care have a wonderful day and thanks again for sharing 🙂
Thanks so much, Theresa. I’m sorry you went on the Disney trip and didn’t know anyone. Did you graduate in our class of 1974? I thought you were in another class. It must have been hard to always be moving around as a child.
You should definitely meet up with us sometime. That would be great fun! 🙂
Here’s to friendships, Cath! 🙂
Cheers, Jo! It’s great to have met so many great online friends through blogging too. My dream would be to meet all my favorite bloggers one day. 🙂
Cathi, what a treasure you have in your friends! I go back that long with a few of my friends, but not many since I moved so much in my earlier years, and I’m not great about keeping in touch. The pictures are precious!.
Thanks so much, Marsha. I’m not always the best at keeping in touch either, but somehow we always end up back together. Thank goodness for Facebook, otherwise I’d be hopeless. 🙂
Yes! It is amazing. I have become Facebook friends with one woman from my junior high school years. We still haven’t connected, and we don’t write much back and forth, but at least I know how to reach her, and vice versa! I’m hoping to see her later this year for the first time in 40 years, but my brother and I haven’t firmed up our trip just yet. 🙂
I hope you meet her! It was so funny a couple of years ago someone from elementary school contacted me. With a last name like Birdsong, I guess I am easy to find. It was fun, but I’ve never met her in person since she contacted me either.
For me it’s harder because I live in California, and grew up in Indiana, and lived in Portland, OR & Colorado in the middle. So I have Old friends in all those places – if they are still living there as well. We are a mobile society! 🙂
You are so right. We are spread out all over the world these days. 🙂
lovely, lovely, lovely! My girlfriends are so important to me and have been there through the good times and the bad. 10 of us met at the school gate when our children started school 20 years ago and we still meet up every couple of months except the two who are in Australia and Spain – love my friends dearly and loved this post too 🙂
Thanks so much, Suzanne. I’m glad you have a group of great friends like these too. I’m sure all of us do. Isn’t it amazing to have friendships that last so long? 🙂
How wonderful to have life-long friends! 🙂
Yes, Robin, I’m so blessed to have these ladies in my life. 🙂
What a treasure, those friendships, and how great you have the photos to bring back memories.
Thanks so much, Carol. I need to go digging around and find more of these photos. Of course all the old ones had to be scanned; I scanned these years ago. I probably have more in boxes somewhere at home. These friendships are most precious to me. 🙂
Quite a precious thing, to keep tat going amongst you all. That ’74 party picture is perfect! So true that as our lives go through ups & downs & drastic changes, our attachment to our best friends remains an anchor to depend on. (I’ve no idea what I might do for the challenge!)
Thanks so much, Lynn. That party picture is hilarious. It certainly doesn’t show me in the best light, but it’s so true anyway. We had some crazy times, that’s for sure.
Can’t wait to see what you’ll come up with for the challenge. I’m getting so behind in everything right now because I’m so caught up in trying to sell my car. I can only handle one stress at a time in my life!! So, I hope you haven’t posted something that I’ve missed already!!
Love this post! Simple and personal. Beautiful! Now I miss my best friends!
Thank you, Michael. I miss mine too. Can’t wait to return to the USA and see them all again. Hope you’ll see yours soon as well. 🙂
Quite a tribute to the power and longevity of friendship with other women! There is something very special being with people who have known you since you were a child – so many things that don’t need to be explained, understandings that more recent friendships just couldn’t provide…
You’re so right, Annette. I love these friends because we know everything about each other. We have such a deep bond and understanding of each other. I love these ladies and am so lucky to have them as lifetime friends. 🙂
What a great post! So much work and I have a pyramid picture almost identical to yours..The 70’s a~~ ahhhhhh !
Yes, Kathryn, the 70s were the best!! I had the greatest time ever in my high school years. I’d love to see your pyramid picture. 🙂
And so you shall, thanks for the walk down memory lane!
http://vastlycurious.com/?attachment_id=1843
I remember this like it was yesterday and it was almost 40 years ago!
I am the laughing blonde that crumpled the pyramid !
So funny, and cute, Kathryn. 🙂
This reminds me of the Brownie friendship song: “Make new friends, but keep the old; one is silver and the other gold.” How true. Beautiful tribute to friendship and a great take on the post.
Love that Brownie friendship song, Lynne. Friends, old and new, are all amazing gifts. 🙂
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Beautiful and not easy to find 🙂
Thank you, Paula. You’re right, it is very hard to find really great friends. 🙂
How lovely to have such long-lasting friendships, Cathy. I enjoyed seeing all your photos. Wonderful memories.
Thanks so much, Sylvia. I’m really so happy to have these women in my life. 🙂
You took us all back to the 70’s with this nostalgic post Cathy! Thank you for sharing your memories. You are blessed to have such steadfast friends 🙂
Thanks so much, Madhu. I do enjoy remembering the 70s as I had a great time in high school with these girls! I do feel blessed to have them in my life. 🙂
what a great great great post. An ode to change, long lasting friendship, human connections and emotions. Really enjoyed looking back at your photo album, you girls have an amazing bond.
Thanks so much! I love these women and am so lucky to have such a long and wonderful history with them. 🙂