How to Maintain a 33-Year Friendship

Excerpt from Not Dead Yet: Rebooting Your Life After 50 by Barbara Ballinger and Margaret Crane (Rowman & Littlefield, 2021)

Margaret was sitting cross-legged in a living room chair reading about Harry and Meghan in a magazine article when the phone rang. It was Barbara. She was nervous about the results of a medical test that indicated she might need surgery and wanted a morale boost. Margaret listened to Barbara process the news out loud and tried not to interrupt or throw in her two cents. “I’m here for you,” Margaret said.

Later, in a follow-up call, Margaret assured Barbara, “This is hard. You’ve done hard things before. I’ll help with whatever you need—doctors, where to go, whatever.”