An old, old, old friendship...

When you're old enough, beyond the many annoyances, you can enjoy some good things, including long friendships.

A good friendship is first and foremost validated by the passing of the years.

If there have been a few good things in my life, having good and close friends is among the best. The hard times I have been through have proved that friends are the first to offer help and support. Of course, the support is mutual, otherwise it wouldn't be true friendship!

Not all friendships last over time and, inevitably, some friends are not the same after a while, their fault, our fault, or because that's life.

My friendships that mattered started in the 80s, so I can say they have lasted over 40 years. There are a few friends who have remained, about 5-6, some we see more often, others less often, we talk on the phone more than we meet.

Whenever we gather, regardless of the location, we tend to stay for the entire day, and there’s always a barbecue!

Just like in Chekhov's plays, if a rifle appears in the scenery, it will definitely be used until the end, and so will the barbecue. When it's close, it will be used!

My friend Valentin, whom we met this time, lives, like me, closer to the suburbs, the houses and courtyards are old and with a look from the past, from the last century—nothing modern, nothing polished and shiny, almost country.

The barbecue is traditional in Romania and there is no shortage of pork, sausages, and "micii", A type of short sausage that has had its protective casing removed.

But food and drink are not the only reasons we get together from time to time when time and each of our schedules allow.

We meet to remember, our youth and their music, because at the table are two of the three members of a Romanian band of the late 80s. The band Roata. Only the leader missing, Sorin Chifiriuc, who disappeared somewhere in England.

I was one of the producers for that particular record, the one mentioned above. It was a bad deal because the Romanians of those times wanted a different kind of music. It was not a musical or financial success, but it changed some lives and destinies, and some lifelong friendships resulted.

_{This is my entry for the #monomad challenge.}