You know how I love the advice I once heard about how if we do what we loved to do at 10, we can be guaranteed adult happiness.

Remember when I heard this theory my eyes fell out of my head. All the things I loved to do at 10, I do now. (oh yes, with some new stuff thrown in there)

So it was great fortune to recently be invited to and attend the birthday of my best friend at 10.

When you move countries and cities as we did growing up, you collect best friends everywhere you go. They mark that time and that place. But the terrible thing is that you leave them behind. And with that some of the essence of who you were.

And when you have only brothers best friends are the sisters you longed for.

Kate was my best friend from Ottawa, where the snow banks were epic allowing the snow forts to be more like snow towns. She taught me me to be tough, she taught me to run, she taught me about loyalty and baking brownies. She taught me that the best cottages have no electricity. She taught me that wearing our brother’s hand me down everything (including long underwear with that secret and strange flap at the front) was damn cool not awkward.

She recently taught me about bravery and real beauty.

And last Friday night, in an elegant cerulean blue dining room at a table with 25 of her closest, during a spectacular meal served and prepared by her favourite chef, Jean Jacques, she reminded me of who I was, my family and my story from her point of view. And I got a chance to thank her, as we each toasted her, for teaching me about friendship and about holding on to being 10.

She announced to the group something I need to repeat

When you get to be a certain age, you realize that your friends become like family and your family like friends

I love that. And I love her.

Happy Birthday to 10 year old Kate. with love from 10 year old Nance.

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