BEST FRIENDS I met Bill (on the right in the photo) and George on my morning getaway to the local Williamsburg, VA Panera prior to my family waking up.    As I held the door open for them, Bill said  “It’s not easy getting around when you are old and after you fell 3 weeks ago.”  While Bill was making his way in, George was running around making sure the car was locked and then going ahead to secure their favorite table.  I ended up siting at a table across from them and we continued our conversation.   Actually, I mostly just listened.   George (89y/o) and Bill (86y/o) have been friends for over 25 years.  Their deep friendship became immediately apparent because only very good friends could give one another such a hard time.  They engaged in the type of “ribbing” that only comes from knowing another person for an extended period of time and with intimate knowledge of the one another’s soft spots.  Here are some of my favorite exchanges between George and Bill.  Wish I could remember them all.  On the iPad: Bill - “I love technology.  I am trying to talk George into an iPad.  I am not having much luck.  If I ever accomplish this I would liken it to the South rising again.”   George – “My birthday is coming up, Bill.  Why don’t you wrap me up one of those iPads and send it over?”  Bill – There is a famous saying, George - “He who expects little is never disappointed” I wouldn’t count on that iPad, George.  I wouldn’t want you to be disappointed.”  On “Mobility”: Bill – “I fell in my house.  It has slowed me down – I cant chase the girls anymore : )  At our age, we wouldn’t know what to do if we caught them.”  George – “Speak for yourself Bill.” On Eternity: George – “I am heading to purgatory.  Bill is going straight to heaven because he has lived such a righteous life.” (said with tongue firmly planted in cheek) On Church/Pastors: George – “We have a new pastor at our church.  He has a young family and a baby on the way.  You know, pastoring is a hard job.  I feel sympathy for him and his family.   Bill – “New pastors are great.  But then something happens - they start getting ideas.  then it’s all down hill from there.”   George – “My sister in-law just got elected to be the chairperson for the new fundraising campaign for the church.  Guess who she is gonna call first??  I think I am heading out of the country for the next few months.”  On Money: Bill – “For years, George has given me a hard time about my profession and the money we made.  I was in pharmaceuticals.” George – “They had a 2,000% mark up on their products.  Obviously the rich guys like Bill don’t care about the poor folk like me.”  (Said with a smile.  Bill just grinned).  On Marriage: George – “My wife and I have been married for 67 years.  Bill and his wife have been married for 64.  Seems like marriages come and go nowadays.” On Their Friendship: George – “I can’t keep up with Bill.  One minute he is building me up.  The next minute he is knocking me down.  (said with a smile) Bill – “Let me tell you, George is my good friend.   Don’t know what I would do without him.  It is amazing how God puts people together.  (said with tears in his eyes) Watching and listening to these two friends interact was a joy.  They knew each other well enough to push the others buttons, but they never pushed too far.  Their love and respect for one another provided the boundaries.  And George was meticulous in his care for Bill.  “Anything else you need, Bill?”  “Let me warm up your coffee.”  “Is this seat ok?”  He attended to all the details.   And Bill was so appreciative.  How many of us have friendships like Bill and George?  As we were leaving I grabbed Bill’s tray to carry it to the trash for him, since he was walking with a cane.  George leaned over to me and said with a smile and loud enough for Bill to hear, “Don’t spoil him.  He will get used to it.”   

BEST FRIENDS

I met Bill (on the right in the photo) and George on my morning getaway to the local Williamsburg, VA Panera prior to my family waking up.    As I held the door open for them, Bill said  “It’s not easy getting around when you are old and after you fell 3 weeks ago.”  While Bill was making his way in, George was running around making sure the car was locked and then going ahead to secure their favorite table.  I ended up siting at a table across from them and we continued our conversation.   Actually, I mostly just listened.   George (89y/o) and Bill (86y/o) have been friends for over 25 years.  Their deep friendship became immediately apparent because only very good friends could give one another such a hard time.  They engaged in the type of “ribbing” that only comes from knowing another person for an extended period of time and with intimate knowledge of the one another’s soft spots. 

Here are some of my favorite exchanges between George and Bill.  Wish I could remember them all.

 On the iPad:

Bill - “I love technology.  I am trying to talk George into an iPad.  I am not having much luck.  If I ever accomplish this I would liken it to the South rising again.” 

 George – “My birthday is coming up, Bill.  Why don’t you wrap me up one of those iPads and send it over?”

 Bill – There is a famous saying, George - “He who expects little is never disappointed” I wouldn’t count on that iPad, George.  I wouldn’t want you to be disappointed.”

 On “Mobility”:

Bill – “I fell in my house.  It has slowed me down – I cant chase the girls anymore : )  At our age, we wouldn’t know what to do if we caught them.”

 George – “Speak for yourself Bill.”

On Eternity:

George – “I am heading to purgatory.  Bill is going straight to heaven because he has lived such a righteous life.” (said with tongue firmly planted in cheek)

On Church/Pastors:

George – “We have a new pastor at our church.  He has a young family and a baby on the way.  You know, pastoring is a hard job.  I feel sympathy for him and his family. 

 Bill – “New pastors are great.  But then something happens - they start getting ideas.  then it’s all down hill from there.” 

 George – “My sister in-law just got elected to be the chairperson for the new fundraising campaign for the church.  Guess who she is gonna call first??  I think I am heading out of the country for the next few months.” 

On Money:

Bill – “For years, George has given me a hard time about my profession and the money we made.  I was in pharmaceuticals.”

George – “They had a 2,000% mark up on their products.  Obviously the rich guys like Bill don’t care about the poor folk like me.”  (Said with a smile.  Bill just grinned). 

On Marriage:

George – “My wife and I have been married for 67 years.  Bill and his wife have been married for 64.  Seems like marriages come and go nowadays.”

On Their Friendship:

George – “I can’t keep up with Bill.  One minute he is building me up.  The next minute he is knocking me down.  (said with a smile)

Bill – “Let me tell you, George is my good friend.   Don’t know what I would do without him.  It is amazing how God puts people together.  (said with tears in his eyes)

Watching and listening to these two friends interact was a joy.  They knew each other well enough to push the others buttons, but they never pushed too far.  Their love and respect for one another provided the boundaries.  And George was meticulous in his care for Bill.  “Anything else you need, Bill?”  “Let me warm up your coffee.”  “Is this seat ok?”  He attended to all the details.   And Bill was so appreciative. 

How many of us have friendships like Bill and George? 

As we were leaving I grabbed Bill’s tray to carry it to the trash for him, since he was walking with a cane.  George leaned over to me and said with a smile and loud enough for Bill to hear, “Don’t spoil him.  He will get used to it.” 

 

Friendship