This morning I was able to spend the day on a limo bus with a variety of women who are all in different phases of life. It was such a beautiful experience to sing to music from two decades ago: dance under glowing lights: and sip some alcohol.

Today was in celebration of a friend turning 40. Seeing so many women show up for her was inspiring. I get a lot of support and have connections in ways that are beautiful in their own right, but they are very different.

My friends are not all interconnected. My friends are more like magnets from periods of my life where I have been able to connect deeply with someone. While I have met their friends, or even attempted to mash people together…….. it’s just not like that.

Some of my friends are beginning to have more frequent interactions since I had my babies. Maybe there will be a time when I have that experience too.

We took photos, smiled, laughed, shared stories, danced, ate, sang, drank, cried, literally held on to eachother in moments. We pretended that all the bad things in the world weren’t happening.

We pet dogs, sat by a fire, skipped to the limo, complained about the cold, expressed gratitude for the sun. We pretended that war isn’t beginning. We pretended that rich men didn’t have the power to potentially steal our children, assault them, and melt them down with acid: then continue to live somehow and worse.

No one spoke about the silent agreement to pretend. We all just saturated ourselves into the moment. So much that we didn’t pretend anything because during those hours: there was nothing bad in the world with us.

I was so fearful I would feel on the outside as I always remember feeling. Instead I felt like I was a part of something. That I was accepted as I am. Being truly me as I am.

Maybe that is all it took all along: for me to accept me as me.

That right there is me: and that lady next to me is my literal ride or die bestie. She has seen me through so many stages of myself and I am so fortunate to be able to share this version that I like best with her.