I have female friends!!!

now to many of you, that may seem like a strange title for a blog post. however, most of my life, i have never had close women friends. oh, there were exceptions, but as a rule, i have always hung out with the guys. this goes back as far as i can remember.

in high school and grade school, i had 'best friends' who were girls. and after losing touch with both of them over the years (yes, you read that right there were only two - one in grade school and the other in high school), i've found them both on facebook and have reconnected. in the years since school, i've had women who i called friends, however we really never did anything together. this was mostly because they were always married and i was not. i did manage to be a fifth wheel a few times, but rarely if ever did we go out without her significant other. at the time i guess it just never occurred to me, but now looking back, i'm so sorry that i didn't cultivate those friendships more.

i didn't intend things to work out this way. it just happened. growing up i was a tom-boy when it wasn't necessarily in fashion. i was very close to my dad and did things he enjoyed: shooting, motorcycle riding, mowing the lawn, and the like. in the mid 1960s, the culture was very different from today. girls doing those activities today are encouraged for the most part. and because of this, there are many more who participate in traditionally male oriented activities.  so i grew up without those strong female bonds. and this was a definite detriment for me that i'm just now realizing.

i look at my daughter who has hundreds of female friends. many of these are friend she considers close. the key difference i think is that many of them were forged prior to marriage. and their friendships continued after the friend tied the knot. i listen with more than a little envy when she talks about going out with the girls. she has a support system in place. something that this last year has convinced me i need in the worst kind of way.

the saying goes, better late than never. i have a good start. my daughter is also my friend. there's my sister. one of the two best friends from school is actively communicating with me and because she now lives out of state, we are planning for me to visit, perhaps later this year. another friend who i haven't talked to in more than a few years, recently remarried and we are in the process of catching up. most recently, i was introduced to a wonderful woman, oddly enough, by her boyfriend (who is my friend....). and i am hopeful that this blossoms into yet another cherished friendship.

so it begins. small at first with only a few. but i'm slowly building my female network and support system. i still enjoy the company of the guys in my life, but i'm really excited about the joys in the new found relationships. maybe it's not too late for me after all?