By Lulu

Funny how in life you gain friends in odd ways. Friendships grow from things as simple as your kids playing ball together or as happenstance as riding on a poker run for a cause you have similar interest in. On our trip to the Ride to the Wall in D.C. an extremely friendly person checked us in, and T.J. offered her a ride on the motorcycle, he probably never dreamed she would jump at the chance…but she did.

And off she rode on her dinner break for a 30-minute two wheeled ride around D.C. while I sipped on cocktails at the bar with my best friend Sherry. Since then we have become friends on Facebook and we have similar political interests and she loves motorcycling. On Facebook I read Grace’s trip to Cuba was being cancelled due to the political problems of our times, so I typed come visit us in Florida. I love this free spirit’s spunk…she typed right back I will come in August. My point in this article is to be open to new friends.

They are the threads that create the tapestry of your life. I cherish my old friends and some I seldom talk to as they were “BMC”…before motorcycling…back when I was in Rotary, Chamber of Commerce, on the Hospital Board and involved in local politics. Still LOVE those peeps. Every once in a while, I hear from girlfriends from those days which seem like a lifetime ago. But when they call it is as if no time has passed and as if nothing has changed. I am sure they think I have fallen off the face of the earth and lost my mind for being involved in motorcycling, but they love me just the same.

I miss them bunches, but I wouldn’t change my life’s evolution because I have met so many people that I love too…Sherry, Allison, Amy, Ann, Bella, Bonnie, Cheralyn, Cheryl, Christie, Claudia, Crash, Dar, Dawn, Debi, Denise, Dora, Flea, Gina, Holliann, Jamie, Jan, Janet, Janice, Jeannie, Jen, Jessica, Jodi, Jody, Judy, Julie, Karin, Kay, Kim, Kitty, Kristi, Lilly, Lisa, Liz, Loopy, Lorrie, Mal, Mandy, Martine, Mary Ann, Micki, Missy, Neela, Neeltje, Nina, Patti, Patty, Paula, Pauline, Peggy, Phaedra Lee, Rachel, Raven, Rhonda, Roxanne, Sandy, Sharon, Shelley, Shelly, Suzi, Tammy, Tator, Tina, Toni, Tonya, T Rex, Vicki, to just name drop a few! And now Grace! Most of these new friends (new as in after motorcycling) I don’t really get to see much. The magazine keeps me busy and they are busy in their lives too, but they all add a richness I wouldn’t have known without them. Oh, and there have been plenty of men too!

So don’t forget, we need new people in our lives to create interesting times and memories. As much as I dislike things about Facebook I do like that we don’t lose contact with someone after we walk out of their door. Offer a stranger a ride, buy a drink for a First Responder or Vet and don’t forget your sunscreen!