Lucky Me

I'm one lucky guy. Not in the sense of ever winning anything. Drawings, raffles, door prizes-- not me. I'm lucky in the most important ways: I have a wife who is a great partner, a son who is a joy 97.83% of the time, a daughter who, at 19, appears to be steering a steady course in life, and a family at large that is always close at heart and wonderful to be part of. And then I have friends, some of whom I've known for 45 years.

Last night I had a really special friend over for dinner. My very first real girlfriend, a woman I have known for 37 years, did a lot of growing up with, and have remained close to all these years. She and her little sister came to visit me and Tam and Ev. It's not the first time we've visited in all those years. It's not the first time we've had dinner together in all those years. It's not the first time we've had dinner with our spouses. It's happened a few times over the years but it's the first time she came to visit at my home.

I suppose it's not all that big a deal given the number of times we've been able to visit over those 37 years. But I have to say, I felt lucky to enter her life 37 years ago and I feel lucky to know her today. I guess I appreciate having that connection intact, a connection which extends back to a time when there was so much to learn in spite of being so smart; so far to go in spite of being so very grown up. It was a time when I held the world on a string and the road ahead seemed so clear.

As it turns out the road wasn't so clear, I wasn't so smart, and I had a long way to go to grow up. But I'm grateful for where that road took me and happy to remain close to this important part of it. Happy and lucky, that's me.