The Importance of Friends, Especially When You Are in 'The Middle Place'

My friends mean the world to me. I have high school and college friends, former work friends, gym friends and friends who don't fit into any single group or category. These are not acquaintances like some Facebook friends; they are all people I know I can count on no matter what.

Several years ago, a gym friend introduced me to a book called The Middle Place. It's a memoir by Kelly Corrigan—a woman who could easily be a friend. She grew up in Philadelphia, but many of her relatives are from Baltimore. In her book she tells the story of her relationship with her gregarious father who was diagnosed with cancer, and you learn about her own struggle with the disease. Along with the overarching topic of the "big C," it's an honest story of being at the point in life when you are smack dab in that middle place between raising children and caring for aging parents.

I was in the middle place when Corrigan's book was passed to me as it traveled around a group of my gym friends. It was a particularly fragile time. Two of my children were in the throes of applying to and making decisions about where they would go to high school and college, and dealing with all the drama that goes along with graduation and transitioning.  The other two kids had their own needs, and my father was in and out of the hospital. I was sandwiched between the joy and anxiety of my children as they embarked on the next stage of their lives, and the sadness and pain of my parents as we realized Dad was nearing the end of his life. 

When I finished reading The Middle Place, I enthusiastically passed the copy on to the next woman in line and recommended it to my work friends, my high school friends and all those other friends who don’t fit into any category. I knew they too would appreciate the story, because it was our story.

Since reading The Middle Place with my friends, we have gone through a lot, and we have survived because of our friendships. We've lost parents, lost jobs and found new interests and passions. Some have battled the "big C" and the others of us have pitched in to help in anyway we could. We've watched our kids grow and succeed and wonder why we don’t feel older. We hold secrets, but not grudges. We "get" each other and accept, advise and comfort each other. And, we can all relate, because we are all in that "middle place."

On Friday, November 18 some high school friends, work friends, gym friends and those other friends who don’t fit into any one category are planning to hear Kelly Corrigan speak at Notre Dame Prep.  While we don’t really know her, we know Kelly would be a great friend. After all, her appearance is a fundraiser for the One Love Foundation, established in memory of Yeardley Love.

Tickets are limited: $30 for general admission and $100 for a pre-event cocktail party.  The talk begins at 7:30 p.m. and cash bar available after the reading. To purchase tickets, go to http://one-love.ticketleap.com