Over the past decade or so, we have made a tradition out of traveling with dear friends. They are a couple with whom we clicked from the start. She and I worked together and “the boys” were a match made in heaven from the get go. They have the same irreverent sense of of humor and an ability to talk to each other non-stop for days and days!

We’ve been fortunate enough to travel in both Europe and the United States and we’ve tried boats, planes, cars, trains and miles and miles of walking. What matters most is being together and laughing as often as possible.

Each trip, of course, has a “merry misadventure” in it. They are not so “merry” until afterwards. There was the time we did Boston and then Maine. My husband was driving and the “girls” were, as always, in the back seat, chatting and snacking. The other husband was in the front, in charge of the GPS. Imagine our surprise when we found ourselves on back roads and, then, at a ferry dock, with directions to board the ferry. Turns out the GPS thought we were walking to Boston and not driving!

This same trip found us heading to the house I had rented in Maine. As my husband, the driver, looked at the map, he said “Do you know there is water between us and the house?” I said, predictably, “Don’t be silly.” But, the truth is that there was water between us and the house and a pretty big stretch of ocean inlet to cross. I called the owner of the house and he said “Oh, I forgot to send you the email!” That email told us about his dinghy at the dock and his ATV on the other side. Let me just say that four adults and four suitcases on wheels were not ideal in this situation.

Our current trip has been great and we are currently packing to head home. On one of our excursions, we went to visit a small town and a lovely abbey in the late afternoon. And we did manage to reach the bus parking lot in time to see the buses pull away, too far to be aware of our frantic (and very American) jumping up and down and shouting! Knowing that the boat was leaving in 45 minutes and that we were, for all intents and purposes, stranded, was a little stressful. But all things work out the way they should and this did as well.

Running for connections, managing confusing train schedules, taking a dinghy across a mile stretch of water in the pitch dark, all moments that are part of our travel history, all moments that we treasure as much as the many good times and great experiences that we have had.

Too often we take friendships for granted, we are happy to make them and happy to have them. But we don’t always take the time to reflect on the blessing of people in your life who become family, whose caring and understanding and closeness is a gift we must treasure. True friends, shared histories, good times and hard times, all ways we continue to fill our full hearts.