Catching up with each other, the way old friends do

The three of us grew up in the same small village, played together at primary school, went to different secondary schools, got together for underage drinking and teenage parties then … grew up and drifted off. We live many hundreds of miles from each other and have all had very different life experiences. On the surface, we have nothing in common any more, yet every few years we get in touch with each other and meet up for a totally indulgent weekend.

None of us has embraced social meeja, so there’s a lot to catch up on when we do meet, but every single time we are together it takes about 10 minutes before we are all giggling hysterically like the giddy school pals we once were.

Of course we’ve had enforced get-togethers over the years for weddings, divorces, new babies, health scares etc, but it’s those non agenda breaks we all look forward to and cherish most. We are currently planning a pre-christmas getaway. They are more luxurious affairs than they used to be, with spa days and fancy dinners now on the agenda, but it’s still the same basic format – three daft women, far from home, feeling somehow tethered by friends who know everything about us and couldn’t care less.

We all know that, even though several years can go by when we’re not in touch, if we needed them, the other two would drop everything and come running. That knowledge has been put to the test on more than one occasion in the past.

All of us have good friends and family who we see on a far more regular basis, but they all understand the bond between the three of us and are used to our occasional disappearances for get-togethers. And fairly understanding about the subsequent hangovers.

So as we choose treatments for our spa day and ponder the merits of Thai over tapas, buy train tickets and book accommodation, we are all looking forward to that 10 minutes in when all the years melt away and we’re back in those happy, carefree days of giggling with our friends. Chin chin.

“The years melt away and we’re back in those happy, carefree days