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Up The Hill magazine (Estrella & CantaMia, Goodyear AZ), Viva magazine (PebbleCreek, Goodyear AZ), The Hamlet magazine (Palm Valley, Goodyear AZ), The Park magazine (Litchfield Park AZ), Main Street magazine (Verrado & Victory, Buckeye AZ), Mountain View magazine (Vistancia, Trilogy & Blackstone, Peoria AZ), The Front Porch magazine (Marley Park, Surprise AZ), The Grove magazine (Sterling Grove, Surprise AZ), and CB Living magazine (Corte Bella, Sun City West AZ),
From Me To You . . . January 2026
It’s amazing how making friends has evolved over my lifetime. At seven years old, making friends was
beautifully simple. “You like unicorns? I like unicorns. Let’s make friendship bracelets.” Boom. Bond sealed with embroidery floss and glitter glue.
Fast forward to middle school, where friendships became Shakespearean dramas. Someone wore the same shirt as you? Obviously coordinated against you. A friend talked to your crush? Friendship over. Forever. Or at least until you both needed bathroom company next period.
College friendships operated on a fascinating principle: shared trauma plus questionable fashion choices equals lifelong bonds. “We ugly-cried together at 3 AM about boys who weren’t worth it while eating nachos” creates surprisingly durable connections.
Then came adulthood, where “Let’s grab coffee!” becomes a negotiation spanning four months, six rescheduled dates, and one group text thread titled “WE NEED TO SEE EACH OTHER” with forty-seven heart emojis but zero actual plans. We’re all very busy being exhausted and pretending to have our lives together.
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Now, in my fifties, I’ve discovered friendship has evolved into something gloriously uncomplicated. My best friend is the one who doesn’t judge when I forget why I called her mid-conversation. Friendship is the woman who’ll admit she also can’t read the menu without her readers. It’s the neighbor who understands that “I’m not feeling it today” needs no further explanation. We’ve earned the right to stop pretending.
I’ve also noticed something peculiar: friendship requirements have circled back to childhood simplicity. “You also consider 8:30 PM wildly late? We’re soulmates.” “You prefer canceling plans to making them? Friendship achieved.”
Turns out, after decades of complicated friendship politics, we’ve returned to the friendship bracelet philosophy. The only difference? Now it’s wine, and we’re all asleep by 9:30.
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Catherine Uretsky
Editor in Chief, Estrella Publishing