Aging Women

Aging women need support systems - friendships!

We need to share our ups and downs and with someone who gets it, usually another woman!

Doreen's birthday party is a beautiful story to share... and a great idea for other ladies to try!

Then a few other friends commented on their friendships with other women!

The Birthday Party

By Doreen, Canada

I had a wonderful birthday party with the privilege of having 62 of my hand picked friends attend. My husband threw the party – it was a surprise and he told me just before it happened so I could shower and dress. He used my personal address book for the invitations and had people RSVP. 55 answered they would come and 7 just showed up.

It had been a dream of mine to have 60 of my friends in a room with each other and when it came true, it was as wonderful as I thought it would be. My speech was this.

The Friendship Speech

What an icebreaker that was. Everyone mixed and compared notes, the party was a come and go, and three hours long but everyone came and stayed. Best part was they seemed to be compatible and really enjoyed themselves.

A friend said something to me today and it made me think. She said, “We all seemingly have our own life.” When you consider how much of that life is woven into the lives of others, it is more as if we are all in it together with the illusion we are apart. So much life is tied into survival, circumstance or chance.

It makes me wonder if –we all pass through life as a journey in our own bodies like a great Disney World tour. Past childhood, adolescence, young adulthood then middle age, into retirement years and then if we are lucky - old age. Taking this tour encased within our own conveyance (body) as we pass through this thing called life.

I agree the women in our life are a life line and have been there off and on for a lifetime. I was leaving the grocery store earlier today and a woman about my age from a different culture caught my eye and we exchanged that sisterhood smile that has encouraged so many of us along the way.

Responses from Aging Women Friends who Read This:

Sharon -- I wonder what happened to friends along the way and over the years. I haven't been in touch with anyone form my childhood or high school, college for years and wouldn't even know where to begin!

My outings now since I retired are so important to me... a group of the gals I worked with, some of who are still working, get together occasionally and we have a lunch out and catch up on everyone's news.

A group of us from our old gym class from 3 years ago get together once a month and do something wildly different. The most recent outing was an evening of bowling with pizza and beer... lots of laughs especially when you haven't bowled for lots of years. Next month we are going to try this new Thai restaurant and the following month we will be doing a Martini and movie night and one of the gal's houses. We've done all sorts of things in the past which included an afternoon at the casino, a play, tickets to a live television show to be in the audience, a shopping trip to just name a few.

So going out with the girls is very inportant to me... whether it's a group or just friends...

Sandi -- I belong to two retiree groups from the Health Plan where I worked for 27 years. I get together several times a year with each of these groups. I had one of the groups here for a luncheon (generally we meet at a restaurant) while another woman in my OTHER group had us over at her house for a luncheon.

I think get-togethers with girlfriends are so important. I don't think men, as a rule, don't really understand a woman's need for other female friendships. I love the "girls" get togethers whether it's a group or just two of us. I think it invigorates us to have these get togethers with our girlfriends.

Wendy -- #1) WOW! What a husband to put together a surprise party like Doreen had! Extraordinary - cherish him! and #2) LOVE that Speech! I'm sure all visitors who read this will too! Just a wonderful thought for any gathering like this -- even a retirement party!

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