Remembering a friend who was there in good times and bad, always with grace

I don’t retrieve however we started calling each different Best Buddy, oregon BB for short, but we conscionable fell into it determination successful our 40-year friendship. When computers became a happening – and erstwhile we some figured retired however to usage 1 – we emailed each different each nighttime and signed disconnected with, “Love and Hugs, BB.” Even if we had been unneurotic earlier, we filled successful the blanks of the remainder of the day.

“I person to archer you again however moving your cello performance was,” I emailed. “And you looked beauteous contiguous successful your caller dress,” BB replied.

Zandra Hanson had a smiling narration with life. She was people drawn to things that brought her joy. When disappointments arose, she refused to fto them sully her happiness, a trait I admired and envied.

Even erstwhile atrocious things happened, similar her unexpected late-stage crab diagnosis, she prevailed with grace. And truthful it was that we spent the past evening of her beingness talking astir however we recovered the silly adjacent successful sadness.

The past happening Zandra said to maine was “write astir our comic stories.”

This one’s for you, BB, connected the 3rd day of the nighttime our emails stopped.

Twenty-three years ago, we had been sitting successful the lobby barroom of a edifice successful Beverly Hills. BB had accompanied maine to a 2nd sentiment astir whether I needed chemo aft my mastectomy. The quality wasn’t promising and she suggested we halt for beverage and process the information. We had pondered galore beingness crises implicit a cupful of tea.

Two men, seated nearby, asked if they could bargain america a drink. After we declined, the absurdity of that connection astatine this clip successful my beingness sent america into uncontrollable laughter.

“What would you similar to bash now?” BB asked erstwhile our laughing had emptied the seats adjacent to us.

“I’m reasoning a one-way travel to a tropical island, possibly unrecorded retired my days connected the formation penning poetry.”

“I’ll spell with you,” she said without hesitation.

And I knew she would. She was that benignant of a friend.

Email patriciabunin@sbcglobal.net, travel her connected Twitter @patriciabunin and sojourn patriciabunin.com