Bittersweet warmth of reunions with long lost friends and separated families

On a hilltop in April four laughing women retrace their footsteps. It’s spring and what they’re doing is the verbal equivalent of flipping through old photo albums. They studied literature together in college in the 1980s and now the deepening lines on their faces speak of the long, diverse arcs of their lives. They have six children between them, roamed varied geographies, stayed in touch, but this sort of meeting hadn’t happened for a while.

And so, at 60, they decide there’s only one gift they require from one another. Not a bag or a book.