The Making Of A “4Lifer”

I learned a new phrase this week. Mainly used by millennials and Gen Z’s, '4lifers’ means those people – friends or family - who will always be in your heart as long as you both live.

A few years ago, we had a delightful guest from Switzerland who stayed with us for four weeks. This was a short stay compared to others who stayed for three months or more, but we quickly bonded with this guest, and we are still very good friends.

We have many wonderful memories from the stay with us but my most cherished memory is that of us baking a cake for another dear friend who was about to celebrate a 90th birthday. I was telling my guest that I wanted to do something special for my friend's 90th birthday and she suggested that I bake a cake. I laughed and made it quite clear that I am not a baker and rarely successful at cakes. The response was a cheerful, "No problem, I love to bake! I will help you."

We made many happy trips to the grocery store to find all the ingredients, and as we were decorating the cake with candies, we realized we hadn’t bought enough, so once again we jumped in the car for another trip to the grocery store. We had such a fun time laughing, talking, baking, and making memories.

This friend became one of my ‘4Lifers,’ - as did some of the other international guests that we welcomed into our home over the years. When we were getting to know each other, my guest asked me if I missed my privacy by being a homestay mom.

It's true, I may have missed my privacy from time to time, but I don’t remember that now. What I do remember are all the priceless experiences with my now ‘4Lifers’.

Sending you all lots of love.