I dunno, but I’ve been lucky enough to keep tied to at least a half dozen people since my teens, in relationships that lasted longer than many of our marriages.
Maybe we've been separated by miles -- or even continents -- but the six or seven of us have kept the conversation going, while some changed partners, careers and even sexual orientation.
As Gertrude Stein (must have) said, a friend is a friend is a friend.
Antoinette and I have known each other 40 years, but she’s spent more than half that time in Central and South America. Someday I'll publish our very rich BI (before-Internet) correspondence. Good to have you home, Chica!