I visited Cleveland earlier this month to help host a shower for the lovely Alex Kordic who will be getting married in March. I met her mom, Peggy, and another woman, Fern, in grad school at Case Western Reserve University shortly after I moved to Cleveland in 1977. That move was a low point in my life - I think it snowed the first three months straight, I didn't know a soul and I moved away from a city I loved. I remember that the interior of the entire house we purchased in Shaker Hts. was painted beige, the carpet was beige and the view from the front yard was dirty white. It was a colorless time those first few months!
However, I met these women as well as other wonderful people and neighbors over the next year, and fell in love with Cleveland. I had lived down the jokes about the "mistake on the lake" and the Cuyahoga River burning, etc. when my ex got his job offer there, and I moved with a real dread. But, the city turned out to be full of interesting things to do; culture, beautiful parks and neighborhoods, beaches, and much more. If only it didn't have the most lengthy and dreary winters in the universe I would say it was perfect.
Peggy, Fern and I bonded and have been friends now for about 35 years. That is longer than I have been married to one person! We originally had a "women's group" which was all the post bra-burning rage. A group of us sat around an evening a month detailing our current issues and problems. Since most of the group were therapists, we had free counseling to deal with life's ups and downs. Then we settled into normal girlfriend relationships and have helped each other through every conceivable life event. In fact, I have often thought a book would be quite juicy in details. Relationship problems, divorces, births, deaths, and every imaginable thing in between. I have laughed at how the conversations at our dinner dates have paralleled women's aging issues. Greying hair, wrinkles, pregnancy, gynecologic issues, etc. When we started having to whip out reading glasses to see the menus, and fan ourselves through a hot flash I knew it was downhill slide!
I saw Alex the day she was born and have watched her grow up. Now she is getting married to a great guy and we have all hopes that she will have a wonderful married life blessed with healthy children and joy and peace. And, I hope that the young women at the shower who are in her bridal party will always be there for her - to hold her up during hard times, to listen when she needs an ear, to help her analyze her problems and create her own solutions, and to share her joy. And most importantly, to laugh with her all along the journey she has ahead.
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