I moved back home after 50 years of a satisfying teaching career. I tried to keep up with my old friends, but mostly lost touch. It is a fulfilling gift to reconnect with old friends. The question is “Why?”

The easy answer is summarized by my favorite phrase: “I don’t know.” That has never before stopped me. In Ph.D. school they have a course that teaches you how to sound like you know the answer to any question whether you know the answer or not.

Ph.D.’s aren’t the only ones who took the course which is called How to Sound Smart Even When You Do Not Know the Answer. Politicians usually make an A. Lawyers commonly make an A++. I made a C- because I can’t fool old friends. They read me like a book.

Most recently I spent a long weekend in Foley, Alabama, with long-time buddies from the Central High School class of ’69 which leads to the first good thing about old friends. They know everything about you and like you anyway. Life’s happenings that were humiliating back in the day are now either funny or poignant. These treasured stories make for my favorite form of entertainment — talking.

Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote a line that fits me: “It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them.” I made good grades in school but I’m perfectly capable of doing stupid things. My old friends (and family) can provide many examples and I have made some doozies.

A great place to find old friends is at class reunions. Our class has had 10 reunions and I’ve made most of them.

The last one was the best. One reason it was good was those in attendance were alive. Being alive at 75 is cool. That makes everyone happy but our ability to drink large quantities of “beverages” has declined precipitously.

Nostalgia wears thin after a while. Then it’s time to talk about kids. Since most old friends’ “children” are 40+ the topic naturally morphs into bragging about how many grandchildren (and great-grandchildren) they have and how bright and accomplished they are. It’s amazing that we somehow manage to avoid talking about those who did a stretch in the hooskow or had any number of life’s stumbles or bumps.

It doesn’t matter if they don’t want to talk about their family embarrassments because any number of old friends will gladly tell you everything you need to know — plus a lot that is none of your business or theirs.

Old friends could be lifelong buddies or a rekindled relationship. The memories of shared experiences are valuable whether accurate or not. Thankfully, old hurt feelings and disagreements do not survive nearly as well as the memories of good times.

At our age it’s great to make new friends but old compadres are more comfortable to be with, more trustworthy and supportive. And more likely to pick up the tab at nice restaurants.

— Gill, an Elk Valley Times columnist, is also an author. His books can be found on Amazon and other online book websites, as well as in stores in Fayetteville and Petersburg.