Throwback Thursday

I have a friend and she comes from the high plains
Wise as the hills and fresh as the rains
I have a friend and she taught me daring
Threw back the windows and let the air in

For all she knows
Bless my blue moon rose

I have a friend and we talk about books
She comes around and she drinks while I cook
Took me an atlas to find her town
And to realise that the world was round

For all she knows
Bless my blue moon rose

~ Everything But the Girl

My darling friend Rosemary and me, above, in Old Town Sacramento, probably early 1984.

We met in early 1982, when she returned to our hometown from Santa Barbara where she had travelled to be part of a ballet company there. We were in High School, and her brother and my brother were friends, and that is how we met. We fell in love from day one, and were fast friends.

We were always at each other’s houses, went out whenever we could, worked together when we could. We lived together for a bit after college, when she came to San Francisco to get away from a crappy boyfriend. I can tell her anything. I hope she can tell me anything. She is true and strong and a fierce friend. A mutual friend once described her as ‘a force of nature’. Exactly right.

As with many long term friendships, we have had our times when we don’t talk much. Interests change, we both married well, we both have beautiful children. Then the careers get involved, and there’s not a lot of time. As we’ve gotten a bit older, and our kids don’t need us as much, and careers settle a bit, we’ve come back together. She still lives 3,000 miles away, which I hate. I wish I could see her all of the time, poke back and forth into each other’s houses like characters on a TV show. But the song above is correct. She opened my mind in so many ways, and spending time with her has enriched my life. Bless my Blue Moon Rose, indeed.