The Worst of Times

Many of us have friends, those guys or girls we pal around with but do we have the "worst of times" friends?

I have a girl friend I only talk to once or twice a year, I know she's there and we've had some great times together over the course of time; from highschool, failed marriages, remarriages, reunions, parties, etc. I miss her and wish I could see her more.

I have internet friends that I talk to daily, play games with some, order clothing from others and yes we share parts of our lives with each other; the family news, good and bad, the day we spent at the mall, doctors, etc. are left as little notes on each others pages, no in dept news, just smidgens.

Then I have this friend, Patsy who by fate, luck or cosmic interference happens to be my sister-in-law too boot. Patsy is a "worst of times" friend; shes there when I need her or if I don't. But I can depend upon her in a pinch. Never complaining, also with a smile on her face, even at 1 am when shes sitting beside me in the er exam room.

We've had some adventures over the course of the 30 years I've been married to her brother; we've catfished on the lake with our hubbies at 3 am, worked side by side at my parents pub and raised children together. She was there to watch Andy and the girls during family emergencies, there to lend an ear in the middle of the night when I was scared, angry, hurt or just plain lonely.

We've played many roles through the years, acting up and being bad at local auctions, truding through the woods on the trail of a good story, or looking for gold as we dug up old bulbs and plants at long abandoned home places.

When her daughter, Emily was sick, I slept in the parking lot of the hospital to be near, and she allowed me to love her and Coop like my own children, and I did just as she loved mine. I wept when she told me her dad died, I'm glad it was her on the other end of the phone.... and I know she wept when my parents went, my momma and daddy loved her as much as I do.

Yep, Patsy is a friend all the time, not just the good ones, not just the every days, or the special days, she's even there during the "worst of times".