We’ve stayed in touch so well since we worked together!

La-Donia and I were in the midst of what has become our nearly daily phone date, lasting anywhere from an hour to 5 minutes, depending on her 1 year old daughter Eleanor’s mood. Today was somewhere in the middle; Eleanor was antsy and wanted to go outside, but then got cold and wanted to eat, but then was teething and just wanted to cuddle with mom. La-Donia and I have gotten used to the fractured phone call, constantly interrupted by her precocious daughter wanting to show us something new.

La-Donia and I met on the 2013 Virginia Lieutenant Governor’s race, a full year before she got pregnant. We haven’t lived less than an 5 hour drive away from one another ever since (she moved to Cincinnati for her husband’s job, I stayed in DC for a bit before moving to Chicago for grad school), but we’ve somehow managed to stay close. Now that she’s a new mom (her daughter turned 1 year old in January), we talk less about politics and more about her daughter’s new tricks, but I still very much value our regular chats. I know when I’ve had a rough day or week, I can call and just rant to her, and vice versa.

There have been a string of awesome stories about female friendship this week that have really resonated with me:

My female friendships were replenishing, and their salubrious effect expanded into other layers of my life: They made things I yearned for, like better work, fairer remuneration, increased self-assurance and even just fun, seem more attainable.

I’m grateful to have a slew of female friends, including La-Donia, surrounding me and encouraging me all of the time. Friends that I know will be there for me through all the ups and downs that will inevitably keep coming as we grow up. ❤

Slice of Life is a daily writing challenge during the month of March hosted by Two Writing Teachers. Visit their blog for more information about the challenge and for advice and ideas about how to participate.