Little things mean a lot...

I got a phone call from an old friend last night. I mean a real old friend - one who, besides my siblings, I've known longer than anyone else. He's also my son's godfather and namesake, a Navy man who forty-some odd years ago hitchhiked all the way from his duty station in Vermont to Maryland in the middle of the night so he would be there for his godson's baptism. Then he turned around and hitchhiked back a few hours later. That's the kind of guy he is.

We don't see each other often, but we've stayed in touch all these years. Through his shipboard travels all over the world, and through broken marriages and wars in foreign countries. Through the trials and tribulations of raising children and the heartbreaks of losing loved ones. And, of course, the good stuff too - graduations, weddings, babies, birthdays - all the ups and downs of a lifetime of friendship.

He worries about me(!) and every once and awhile he calls, just to check in and see how life is treating me. Usually a couple-three times a year, and almost always on St. Patrick's Day. He's fond of his drink, and he's Irish to boot, so he doesn't need much excuse to celebrate the day... all day. Singing Irish songs with my inebriated Irish father in the middle of our living room on the Day of Himself is definitely one of his fondest memories - it comes up almost every time we speak - and my father has been gone for 33 years.

As a matter of fact, that's usually when he does call... when he's three sheets to the wind. I tease him and ask if he even knows who I am when he's sober. lol See, he gets melancholy when he drinks and sometimes his memories get the best of him as he tries to recapture the good ol' days. So, he picks up the phone to reminisce. It doesn't matter, because at least he calls... and that's a good thing.

He's one of the good guys and I love him to pieces. I'm glad he's in my life and it's nice to know he's there if I ever need him. I don't know what I'd do if anything happened to him, so I don't let myself think about it. These genuine male/female friendships don't come along very often so I just treasure it, tuck it away in my heart and look forward to our next phone call.