Who is your oldest friend? Do you have someone you’ve known since childhood? Since college?

Which friends do you hope to keep for a lifetime?

My mom is in town this week, but not at my house. She’s out having fun with a group of her college roommates, who all flew in for their 50th class reunion at Wheaton College (where both my parents and I went to college).

That’s right. My mom is at her 50 year college reunion.

Just this past October, my parents also happened to celebrate 50 years of marriage, by taking a trip with two other couples that they met as newlyweds. They celebrated 50 years not only of marriage, but of friendship, with these couples. They’ve been taking vacations with these friends since I was a kid.

My parents’ friends are scattered geographically. They don’t really use Facebook to connect. But they are like trees, with roots that intertwine deep below the surface.

I find it so easy to just skim along, busy with work and kids and life. I am blessed to have friends, but don’t always make the time to connect with them. Seeing my parents enjoy people they’ve known for 50 years stirs a resolve in me–to make the effort to connect with friends, to invest in those relationships. To remind myself that if I’m too busy for my friends, I’m just too darn busy.

How about you? Do you have any friendships you hope to keep for half a century or more? What are you doing to keep those relationships going?