'How Lucky to Have Such Friends'

Mr. and Mrs. Shodeen are wonderful and dear friends. They are neighbors at Lake Geneva, WI, where my family goes in the summer.
Every winter the Shodeens travel to a warmer climate. Every summer, I invite them to stop off and see us en route.
When they called to say they were coming for a visit, I wasn't home. Later I asked my mother, "John has extra tickets to the Nebraska game. Do you think the Shodeens would be interested in going to it?"
"Well, they'll do just about anything. I think they might really enjoy it," she answered.
She was right. They thought a college football game sounded like a lot of fun. On the morning of the game, Mr. and Mrs. Shodeen arrived at our house out fitted in Husker Red.
After spending some time looking around our place, playing with the children and visiting with me while I packed a Go Big Red lunch, they set out with John, Patrick and friends for Lincoln, where they had such a good time that John said, "The Shodeens became instant alumni."
That evening without even a breather, we commenced socializing and eventually sat down to a delicious meal, cooked by me, topped off with after-dinner games with the kids and a viewing of the World Series.
These good friends have been parents three times, grandparents about 11 times, and great-grandparents at least three times, and they have known me almost all of my life. The difference in our ages is barely noticeable, however.
It is sometimes difficult to decide which of us is older. I like to think that John and I do things, but we're stick-in-the-muds by comparison.
When you know someone for a long time, there usually are happy stories to tell.
We kids always washed our hair in the lake. Once in a while we'd talk adults into doing it, too, so we could play beauty parlor.
Mrs. Shodeen was always game for this. One time she washed her hair and then sat on the pier while I put curlers in it.
It took me such a long time to finish that I thought her hair was getting to dry and wouldn't curl.
So I got a pail of lake water and threw it at her. I think she was pretty surprised, but all she said was, "This is one benefit they don't offer at my other beauty parlor."
When Donna, the Shodeen's daughter and my good friend, and I were in college we used to go out together on summer evenings. One time when we were on a rather wild streak, Mrs. Shodeen suggested that we come home early that evening instead of "carousing" past midnight.
Mr. Shodeen, who overheard this conversation, wondered aloud what this carousing was about. Mr. Shodeen has very gentle and observant sense of humor.
When my sister, Mary Pat, asked us how the Shodeens' visit was John said, "They are really amazing. Bill is such a gentleman with Lill." John can call them by their first name because he hasn't known them all his life.
"Mr. Shodeen is always a gentleman," Mary Pat said. "That must be why marriage has worked for them for over 50 years."
Life is meant to be enjoyed, is the attitude Mr. and Mrs. Shodeen have.
A cynical person might say they are just lucky: They have each other, they are healthy, and they have the resources to enjoy a pleasant lifestyle. Anybody would be happy with these conditions.
This may be true, but some folks are unhappy and no fun to be around no matter what the situation, and others are upbeat and a source of delight under the most adverse conditions.
I prefer the latter kind of person. That's why I think I'm the one with the luck, because I know the Shodeens and even better, I'm inspired by them.
November 12, 1986