This is a two part post about a reconciled friendship.  Part One is my version and can be found here. Part Two is a guest post from the best friend’s perspective.

Life is fragile and precious and fleeting.  Holding onto hurt just isn’t worth it. No matter how deep rooted, no matter how big and overwhelming it might feel. It just isn’t worth it. I held onto the pain and hurt I felt after our falling out for all seven of those years that we didn’t talk. I just couldn’t let it go. I tried,  but I didn’t know how. My life went on. I got married, moved, had kids, and a career, and lived a very happy life.  But this just wouldn’t go away. And it was toxic. It crept into my thoughts all the time. I hated that I couldn’t just let it go and move on with my life.

This past June, I got a text from my Dad telling me that Simon was dying and all of those feelings very suddenly lost their importance. I reached out. Because what mattered was that my old friend was going through this awful, horrific thing and she needed all the support and love she could get. I would be lying if I said all of the feelings I’ve held onto for all these years are completely gone – they’re not. But in an instant they lost their weight. They just don’t matter like they used to in the face of this tragedy Simon and his family were going through.

I wish it didn’t take something this horrible for us to be able to reconcile and move forward, but I am so grateful that we have. And I wish we didn’t miss out on all these events in each other’s lives over the past seven years, both grand and awful. But we’re here now. On the same page.  Maybe we’ll be able to take our kids swimming together one day and horrify them by whipping out those matching swimsuits (yes, I still have mine).

So basically what I’m saying is ditto to what was said in Part One. We get hurt, we hurt people, relationships fracture and crumble for millions of reasons, sh*t happens. But in the words of my toddlers’ newly discovered favorite movie (“the ice movie”)- let it go. let it go, let it go, for goodness sake, LET IT GO! Life is short. And bad things happen. But I am incredibly lucky to be alive and be able to move forward with my life and repair my relationship with this brave woman who has played such an important role in my life. Whittwood Mall (does that still even exist?) –  get ready. You just might someday see two grown women cruising through in bear costumes pretending they lost their contacts.