Best friends, forever!

A Homeland Holiday is never complete without a visit with my best friend. And that means a trip to Portland for some bestie time!

Rachel and I have known each other for nearly 35 years and have been friends for nearly 30 years. As we’ve grown and our lives have changed, so has the nature of our friendship. We are no longer glued to each other’s hips. We are not in and out of each other’s pockets. In fact, we rarely ever talk. We don’t even interact on social media that often. Mostly, one of us will reach out if we need a favour from the other.

Some of that is the distance between us. If I was still in Washington State, we would probably see each other several times a year. And we would probably be on the phone regularly. But that is not how things are. Life has changed and our responsibilities have changed along with life.

But I know that I can always call my friend when I need her. She was the maid of honour at my wedding. She dropped everything the day my husband died and drove 350 miles to be there for me in my time of need. And despite her wish that I would return to the Pacific Northwest, Rachel supports my decision to live in Scotland, 6,000 miles away.

My visit with Rachel was shorter than I wanted it to be, in part because of my mid-holiday holiday. But the time we had together was great! We took a drive up to a local lake where we walked around for a while before sitting on a bench watching the world go by – whilst we chatted away as if we haven’t spent a day apart. And then, we went for some tater tots with ranch dressing. Because that’s what we eat!

I am looking forward to the day that my PhD is done and I have a proper grown-up job again. Because that will mean that I will have enough money (and, hopefully, time) to visit Rachel more often. In the meantime, at least I know that Rachel is there for me when I need her, even though I’m far, far away.