Okay, best present ever

Just a few minutes ago, a friend of mine from high school surprised me with a happy birthday phone call. I haven't spoken to her in more than 15 years. For some reason, after all this time, she still has my birthday marked on her calendar and this year she tracked me down from our hometown in Oregon. I could cry. Seriously. She has always been an amazing, positive influence to anybody around. We played Little League Softball together on the Southern Oregon Masonry team that my Dad coached. She played second base to my catcher. We had a killer move that caught people stealing from first base on a regular basis. Now? She has five kids, the youngest of them 11 years old and picking her new softball bat for the season online. My Girlie? She has declared that she hates sports with balls. Cripes. Now don't let me digress. This old friend just made my day. If you looked up "upbeat" in the dictionary, you'd find her picture. And that's saying a lot from me -- the slap-happiest girl around in most situations. She's well. Her folks are well. And she has five wonderful kids. Thanks for the gift, S.