Who was your first best friend? Are you still in contact?
I consider my first Best Friend to be Kayleen Killian. When I was in grade school I basically played with my cousins or friends who lived in the neighborhood. The only cousins I played with were the Johnson's. Julie was closest to my age but it seemed we all kind of played together. My friends in the neighborhood were quite a bit younger than me. We lived on a small farm in Springlen, Utah. None of my neighbors were real close because of the farmland around us. The Browns lived on the other side of the mail route. We would take a short cut through the wash to go play at their house. I really enjoyed the friendship we had with the Browns. They were a large family and had plenty of kids to play with.
I always struggled with the kids in our ward. They would make fun of me, snub me, and I felt most of the time, unkind towards me. It made me very self conscious. I always felt something must be wrong with me to have them all dislike me so much. So I really never had a best friend till the ninth grade. That is when I met Kayleen. She was always friendly, kind, and a fun person to be with. She always included me in her circle of friends. Most of her friends lived in Price and attended Mont Harmon Junior High. I often wondered why she made such an effort to be my friend but I was very grateful. The Killian's ran a hotel on the old Carbonville road, she was able to have a sleep over party in one of the rooms. It was a large group of girls and it was a lot of fun. She brought me into a circle of friends that seemed to have no judgement and were kind to me. I will be grateful to her for the rest of my life. It was a turning point for me in my confidence and self worth. We had a lot of fun together. She introduced me to Doug Hussey. I was at Helper Junior High and he was at Mont Harmon. We would pass notes back and forth through the school Counselor who worked at both schools. He was my first boyfriend.
It was so nice to go through 9th grade with a best friend. We were good friends and went to all the Ballgames, school activities and the Gold and Green Ball dances. We remained best friends through my 11th grade of high school. For some reason our senior year we started hanging out with different crowds. I really missed her friendship that last year. My friends all started drinking and doing drugs, so my senior year I mostly spent it at home. I didn't hang out very often with anyone.
In college we renewed our friendship. She was my maid of honor at my wedding and I was a bridesmaid at her wedding. We have sent Birthday and Christmas cards to each other over the years.
The gratitude and love I have for her will always stay deep in my heart. I know because of her kindness that my life changed.
3 comments:
She is a sweetheart. I see her from time to time and she always asks about you.
What a good post. I really like that I get to see your life through your eyes. This has truly been a wonderful thing Leslie. I am so glad you are doing it with me this year.
I can relate to the Spring Glen bunch of girls. For some reason, they just didn't like us. I am glad I had Lynette as my best friend because it did make it easier. I remember being called as the first Y.W. Laurel President for the new program. I was the youngest in the group. Only 15 years old. That did so much for me. Even though the older girls were unkind and judgemental toward me, I flourished during that time and gained confidence in myself. I was grateful for Bishop Rasmussen.
Something that did bother me about my friendship with Lynette. In 9th grade she got on the drill team. I was in the pep club. But I remember distinctly Sister Brown trying to put a wedge between us because Lynette was all of a sudden more popular... better than me now. That really hurt me, but for some reason I was (and still am) able to rebound fast and not things like that bother me. Those Jr. High and High School years were a little rough.
And Kayleen Killian... she is a gem! She is a special person and I am also grateful to her. She was your best friend in high school and she became one of my dearest friend's in college. Even with 5 children... she became a cherished friend that I could talk to and rely on to boost my confidence. I can't remember why she was going to CEU the same time I was. But then, again, you and her are only 4 years younger than me. She often talked about your's and her friendship. You didn't say how you met her in 9th grade. That would be fun to know. Thank goodness for her for taking you in. It was sort of a rescue. I know how hard it was for you in Spring Glen. I mostly ignored the rude remarks and judgement. I can't understand to this day why the girls were like that there.
Kayleen lived in Carbonville and attended Mont Harmon 7 & 8th grade. The School District changed the boundries for the schools, so her 9th grade, along with other kids from Carbonville, Debby Taniguchi, Lori Smoot, a few others were sent to Helper Junior High. We met at school. It was such a good thing for me when they changed the boundries. I developed good friendships with a lot of those that were part of that change.
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