The Power of Facebook

OK, so a few days ago I wrote about my introduction to Facebook and said it was silly. It is a little silly, but...in less than a week I have reconnected with almost every best friend I've ever had.

I am particularly giddy about finding a friend I haven't spoken to in nearly 30 years: Regina Lemke. In the early 70's, Regina and I lived across the street from each other on Center Avenue in Libertyville, IL. I don't remember actually meeting her–because I was probably in kindergarten–but some of my earliest childhood memories are the years that followed when we were practically inseparable. And this week all those sweet memories have come flooding back.

Regina was a year older so, of course, was much more grown up than me. Her mom worked outside the home (a foreign concept to me), had perfectly coiffed red hair and always wore lipstick and nail polish. She was my definition of glamour.

Regina was an only child who lost her father at an early age, so it was just her and her mom. Their home was quiet, clean and well-decorated; she had her own room (something I could only dream about) filled with matching white furniture that I coveted.

This was very different from my home, which was in a perpetual state of chaos because it was always filled with small children: three younger siblings and innumerable neighborhood children that my mother cared for during the day. Being at Regina's was like being in another world.

Our family left Center Avenue in the summer of 1975 when my father took a job in New Orleans. Regina and I saw each other exactly twice over the next few years; by the time we both started high school we had lost each other.

For me, reconnecting with Regina is more than just finding an old friend. I have found my first true girlfriend, my original bff. All because of a silly website.