Transformation And Transcendence: The Power Of Female Friendship

The Rumpus:

In 1997 I arrived in Geneva to work for a year at the headquarters of a relief organization. Feeling overwhelmed by my job and lonely in a city of overworked expats passing through for two to three year stints at the United Nations or other organizations with the rather nebulous goal of "changing the world," I made friends with a group of women. I was 22, and all three women -- one American, one German, and one Argentinian –- were 30 years older than I and had worked for the same organization in various administrative capacities for the length of time I'd been alive. After one lengthy, boozy dinner of fondue and buckets of white wine, they quickly took me into their friendship fold and jokingly referred to themselves as "the Wrinklies."

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Comments

[eagle48]

10:22 PM on 01/23/2012

Such a beautiful article.

[OKSunny]

06:02 PM on 01/23/2012

Beautiful. Moved to another state (OK to CO) knowing no one. I miss my girlfriends

[Amadahy]

01:36 PM on 01/23/2012

A lovely article...What I took away with it, as a man, was it's important to live one's life, to follow one's heart and dreams, even when our dreams may be to be in a relationship with a significant other.