River Street Reunion
As a child my family moved around a lot. As a result I didn’t make friends easily. However, in the fall of 1995 that changed. I was sixteen years old and going to a new school. It was there I met my best friend, Alecia Miller. At twenty-one I moved here to Savannah, where I remain. I have come to love this little city. We kept in touch, but eight hours separated us. Many emails, letters, and not so funny cell phone bills came and went over the years.
Finally, last year, Alecia was able to make the trip here to see me. I was so excited. We had planned the perfect evening starting with dinner at a tucked away bistro near City Market. Over salad and wine we talked about old times and laughed about our teenage antics.
Then we walked, arms linked, to River Street while we talked about the strange ways our lives had differed from how we imagined. Neither of us brought up the subject of her leaving the next morning. It was too painful. This was our only night to be the girls we had once been together. The street lamps shining brightly against the evening dusk, we skipped down the cobble stone street, oblivious to the stares we acquired along the way. All that mattered was that we were together again.
The sounds of the Savannah River could be heard as boats passed by, leaving a wake of waves splashing below us, drowning out our off key renditions of our once favorite songs. Overwhelmed with the perfect Savannah evening we found a bench to sit down on. We watched the river. We began to share our emotions. The loneliness we had felt while we were apart was evident in the tears flowing down our cheeks. We talked for hours until it was time for her to leave. We never have been able to get together again. Our lives are full of being mothers and full time workers, but we will always have our once-upon-a-time in Savannah, at the edge of the river where this city was born. — L. M.
