Happy Birthday to a Very Special Friend

I just have to take a moment and blog about a dear friend of mine who had a birthday this week. Jackie has been my friend since we were in grade school, my very best school friend. But she did upset me when we were in the sixth grade; that's the year that she and her parents moved away from our hometown. That just wouldn't do! She had come to my house and spent many nights with me, and I had spent nights with her. I recall one day in particular, when I went home with her. At that time, Jackie lived in the country. One of our favorite pasttimes was playing on the jumpboard. For those of you who don't know what that is, it is similar to a seesaw but closer to the ground. We would stand on either end of the board and when one jumped it caused the other to fly through the air, come back down on the board, and cause the other to go airborne. Well, when I was jumping with her brother, Bill, he literally sent me through the air, so far that I didn't land anywhere near the board! Yes, the breath was knocked out of me. No problem, however, after I got my wind back, I soon got up and tried again. (Her brother later became a doctor; perhaps seeing my need for CPR had something to do with his choosing that field. heehee).

Back to the story about my birthday friend. I missed Jackie for several years but one day, I received a phone call. It was Jackie calling to tell me she was moving back here and asked if I would be her best friend again! Of course!! And we were the best buddies all through high school. We even chose to attend the same university. Thanks to her encouragement, I decided to further my education. We didn't see each other there as much as I wanted to, however. She had her friends from her dorm, but we did manage to see each other occasionally. We graduated, she got married and moved out of state; I moved back home to teach school. Whenever she visited her family, I was the first one there to see her and her new family. Later, when I was married to an Air Force officer, we traveled but we still kept in touch through our families. After Don retired, we came back home but Jackie still lived about 3 hours away. No matter, we did keep in touch; in fact, I spent a weekend with her (that's when she pulled a trick on me by telling the waitress at a restaurant that I was having a birthday when I wasn't! Everyone in the restaurant started singing! Embarrassed? Yes!).

Whenever Jackie came home to visit her family, we would always try to get together. Now, her parents and my parents are no longer with us. This makes it more difficult to get together but that doesn't mean that she is not close to my heart. She will always be my very dear school chum and present friend.

I have never told you, Jackie, but because of you, I did go to college, did well for myself, and I owe it all to you. Thanks for being my dear friend. Happy Birthday, Jackinette! May you have many, many more! Above all, I wish you happiness, good health and may God bless you real good!