You recognize this if you have been friends for more than 20 years

I am lucky to have two very dear friends who have stood close to me for eternity. I have known them for certainly the greater part of my life: bizarre.

With one of my dearest girlfriends, whom I actually saw twice this week for coffee and lunch, I have been friends for about 26 years. We got to know each other when we went to preschool. How old are you then, about three, at most? One day we played together in the doll corner and it has never really been different since. Except for those dolls, they have disappeared by now. I have also known another special friend for 23 years: we came together as little girls in the hockey team. And although we haven't been skipping the ball enthusiastically for a long time, we still share joys and sorrows after all these years. And we can still laugh just like we did on that field. Special.

Because whatever you experience in your life; girlfriends those you have known for so long are priceless. Irreplaceable, better said. No matter how many new friendships you may still gain in your life, it is never quite the same. With these girls, you shared your youngest childhood. You know each other so well that it feels more like sisters. You don't have to explain anything to each other, because hey, you already know everything. A different kind of friendship than someone you only get to know as an adult, of course, no matter how good friends you may get later in life. One is not necessarily better than the other: it is just so incredibly sometimes, when you share your entire past with people who are not really your family. That is not comparable to other friends. And I should sometimes take a moment to reflect on that, to cherish it. That's what I'm doing now, for a moment.

You recognize this if you have been friends for more than 20 years: 

1. It always feels familiar and normal, even if you haven't seen each other for a month.
2. You never have to pretend to be someone else. Because they know who you are, no matter how bad it sometimes is.
3. You can reminisce about memories from the past for days and you share so many of the same adventures and acquaintances.
4. Of course, you have sometimes been less in agreement during phases and at certain major events but true friendship can withstand a blow.
5. You only need a word, a laugh, a simple message to know what is going on.
6. You can talk well with each other about family: after all, you have known each other's families for so long.
7. You may be very different in some things, but there is also something that always keeps you together.
8. You know they will still be there for you in twenty years. And you for them.

Thank you for always being there, friends. Together to the nursing home, right?