<b>By Lee Scott</b>

Soon after I moved to the area, I started my search for a new best friend with red hair. The reason for this endeavor was because ever since I was 5 years old, I have always had a best friend with red hair. I don’t know why. A part of me wonders if it wasn’t because of the old “I Love Lucy” shows with Lucy and Ethel. Those two were best buddies — one blonde and one redhead. But I have discounted that theory because I would not have known whether Lucy was a redhead or not since we only had a black and white TV at the time.

It all started with Vickie Adams, my first red headed girlfriend; then there was Marianne, then Lynn, then Libby and then Donna.  As I moved around as a child and then as an adult, the relationships with  redheads seemed to just happen without me trying.

So living in a new place, I found myself once again looking for a new best friend. Someone who likes to do the things I like to do. Someone with the same kind of  shared experiences. Someone who just  understands me.  Someone with red hair.

When I talked to my husband about finding a best friend, he said, “I thought I was your best friend.”

“You are my best male friend. It’s not the same,” I replied. Ask any woman.

I do have my daughter who I call my life best friend.  She gets me!  We know every line of the movie “Steel Magnolias” and we can tell by each other’s tone of voice what kind of day the other is having. But she is not here, and regardless of how close we are, it is difficult for me to separate my maternal instinct totally from our friendship. She understands this more now since she has her own daughter.

But I have lived here in Beaufort for a while and I have had the opportunity to meet many interesting women.  The realization has come that I don’t have to have one RBFF (Redheaded Best Friend Forever). The  women I have met love the things they are doing and are willing to share their experiences with me. Each of them is unique. Some have children, and some don’t. Some like to travel, to read, volunteer, go to concerts or go boating.  These women have opened my eyes to so many things and provided me with a new insight in my search for a best friend. I don’t have to limit myself to one redheaded best friend. I have expanded the circle and found many new friends.
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