Ring Around The

Ring around the Rosie; we chanted as we held hands and danced in a circle.

And while we spun, the circle seemed to wind around faster and faster, making us dizzy.

We laughed and thought,

“We’ll always be like this. Holding hands, laughing, and nothing will ever change.”

How wrong we were. How blinding innocence can be.

Because. of course, none of the three things we expected to continue, ever did.

I have lived in many towns, known many people and been blessed with many good friends.

They were the ones who held hands with me as we danced in a circle, and made plans; some of which came true and others faded into the twilight of life.

Sometimes when the night is not totally dark, and the moon seems to invade my world with its calm serenity, I remember them.

Tonight I remembered the kind neighbor, who was the Mother of my daughter’s best friend., and also, the one who drove me to the surgeon on an icy winter morning.

Mary was a widow and relocating, as I did decades later, to be near family.

However, optimistically she spoke of her intention to return often.,

“It won’t be so different. I can make the drive easily. When I come back for my hair appointment, we will lunch. Wait and see, it won’t be different.”

And it wasn’t. At least in the beginning.

But like the moon, the visits waned. Not deliberately but with good cause.

Weather seemed to present more problems that winter than normal. And time seemed to accelerate between phone calls and suddenly, there wasn’t quite so much to talk about.

And the circle of distance seemed to spin faster and faster throwing us both off balance, and suddenly we weren’t holding hands anymore.

And even though the circle of friendship had not broken, we both fell down. And when we got up and looked around, someone was missing.