Question #3

[fbhjr]

This is in answer to the frozendoll meme I started earlier.

#3) Your first best friend
The first best friend I remember was Julie Telino.  (Actually I have no
idea if that is how her name was spelled as it was before I could even
write my own name.  I’m just writing phonetically the name I remember from
44 years ago.)
We were in kindergarten together.  She lived about halfway between my house
and the school.  So, we walked home together most days.  We played together
most weekends.  Our parents brought us places together.

Her house was right at the end of the woods my father had behind our house.
When I was five going into the woods far enough I couldn’t see my house any
more was a bit scary.  But, there was a path that came out near her house,
so I learned that path despite the many trees.

Of course the woods was less scary than the street.  To walk the street to
her house I had to go past Barry’s house.  He picked on me as often as he
could.  I could get past his house coming home from school as he was in
first grade and those of us in kindergarten were let go 15 minutes before.
But, if I was running late, the woods were far safer.  (Unless his older
bother Steve was around.  Steve would protect me from Barry.  But, he was
rarely around.)

In the map below, my father’s property is in green.  Julie’s is in blue.
Barry’s is in red.
Our house was at the very base of the “Christmas tree” and almost all of
the rest was woods.
When I was young, everything in orange was woods.  Now it is mostly houses.


Half way through kindergarten, her family moved away.  We were given very
little notice of this.  One afternoon when playing we were told “say
goodbye to your friend as tomorrow they’re going to move away.”
And, that was that.  I’ve never seen Julie or her brothers again.

Although I had wanted to keep in touch, I was then 5 and my resources were
limited.
As far as I know, my mother made no effort to try and keep in touch with
them.  And, as far as I know they never made any effort to keep in touch
with me.

Several years later we were driving through Walpole MA, about 2 towns over
from where I grew up, and my mother pointed at an apartment complex.
“That’s where the Telion’s moved,” she said.  “But, you probably don’t
remember them.”
“I remember Julie and her two brothers,” I said.  “Are we going to stop and
visit them?”
“No,” my mother said, and we drove past.

So, she had known where they moved.  I’ve always wondered if there was some
reason they moved away so quickly and our parents didn’t keep in touch.
But, I will probably never know.