Wondering where they are?

Last night I asked Mark, "Where are all the Jan's, Ed's, Jenn's, Alan's, Jane's and Tommy's here?" I recently read this statement: "Friends are special people. We can't pick our family, and we're sorely limited in the number of them at any rate. Society and mores (and often our own conscience) dictate we select a single mate. But our friends can be as diverse and infinite as the adjectives we choose. Our friends, in a very real sense, reflect the choices we make in life." The last sentence hit home. I have alway been the sort of person that is there for you in thick and thin. I am one of those people that will ALWAYS listen to you, not necessarily give you the advice you need, but listen and try to be objective. I think back on the 20 years of Coast Guard life and the friends I have made, Sandy and Paul, Dave and Penny, Mary Ann and Fred, Barb and John, Dena, Susan, Debbie, Andrea and Dan, Brian and Linda, Ann and John, Beth,
of course Jan and Ed, Alan and Jenn, Jane and Tommy, Joann and Frank, Maggie and Ben, Jeannette, Katie and John, Lindsay, Amanda, Gail, Cyndi and Gary, Jennifer and Michael, Sherry, Michelle and Ed. These are people I still am in touch with whether it is via e-mail, telephone or just Christmas letters and cards. Some of these people we got together with for 4th of July BBQ's or game night or New Years Eve parties or came by while our husbands were deployed just to have spaghetti and a glass of wine to get through yet another lonely night. I am truly missing these people. These are the sort of people who are the honest to God "true" friends. No games, no bullshit, not those fair weather friends who are there when their life is tough and then kick you to the curb when it gets easier only to come looking for you a few weeks or months later when their life gets difficult again. So last night when I asked Mark that question, he hugged me and said to me, "they are here....somewhere."