The kid who bought me lollies claims she’s about to be a grandma. I’ll get over it

March 12, 2026 — 7:30pm

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My old school friend, visiting from England, dropped a bombshell on us recently when she announced that she is soon to be a grandmother. The news induced an out-of-body experience akin to the one in the movie Father of the Bride, in which the daughter tells her parents she’s engaged and all the father can see is a five-year-old girl telling him she’s getting married.

Looking at my friend when she revealed impending granny-hood, I had a flashback to her as my teenaged friend. There she was, coming to school with a wet ponytail from early-morning swimming training: the girl I sat with in maths class, sharing a book in that sunny spot under the slanted window that looked up to the sky.

I remembered her generously opening up her weekly pay packet from her job at the bakery to buy us lollies after school on a Friday. She was my accomplice in sending out anonymous Valentine’s Day cards. Some years later, on holiday from England, she took me into a........

© The Sydney Morning Herald