It was all because of Heather. It was her party after all and her idea as an additional element to the usual games, drinking and eating excesses that constitute our New Year’s Eve party.

The 8 of us are pretty tight as friends – we were all at Strathclyde University together, in Glasgow, and somehow we became friends who got together every New Years Eve – Hogmanay as its called north of the border – and pretend that we are still 19 year olds with our lives ahead of us. Of course, we weren’t! We were approaching 30 now and although we were hitting the peak of our physical abilities we knew that we would soon be facing out 30s and the dreaded “landmark” of a 40th birthday that signalled the descent into middle age! Those wonderful care free days of being a student were far behind us but for one night each year, we could get together and relive those days and remind ourselves that we were once young and foolish!

Our little band were in the main part still single – Graeme had married when he was 21 but they had separated by the time he was 25 and was now planning to divorce, but the rest of us were still single – although a couple of the girls were in relationships that they claimed still had potential. Their partners however had decided not to be part of the New Years party, heading elsewhere to see in the bells which would indicate that their view of the relationship was considerably less committed as their partners hoped for.

I had arrived at 8pm as per the invitation but found myself the first to arrive. It meant I was getting the 4th degree from Heather on my life choices. “Why are you still single Tim?” she asked incredulously. “You’re pretty buff for a man of your years” she said looking me up and down. “I’ll take that as a compliment” I replied and said “Look, I’ve been pretty busy work wise in setting up the company’s new office in Birmingham and I’m hoping to make Partner in the practice in the next couple of years so if Birmingham goes well, it will cement my place at the top of the pecking order.” I spewed out the usual diatribe I used to deflect the attention on my marital status which I had used to my parents and grandparents over the recent months and it was so ingrained within me that I almost believed it myself.

Jenny’s arrival at the door stopped the conversation continuing and I managed to avoid being the subject of conversation for the next 10 minutes, giving me time to down the first of many whiskies and grab a seat with a view of the television, which was showing one of those generic “review of the year” shows regurgitating news and events that we had watched many times over the past 12 months. It was as though TV stations were unmanned over the holiday season and a janitor had been left to show anything that would keep the masses quiet until January arrived. Mind you, I expected the television programming on 31 December was only ever background noise for the traditional family gatherings and parties and nobody was really watching until the clocks approached midnight and folks waited to make sure they were celebrating at the same time as the rest of the country.

Around 8.20pm my good friend Alec arrived. He had been on the same University course as me, studying Law, and he was my closest friend during the 5 years we studied together. While I had moved more into Common Law, Alec had specialised in Civil Law so we ended up in different companies but we maintained our friendship and initially would meet every other week for a beer and a chat which became monthly and then quarterly as our lives became more complex and time consuming. “Hey buddy!” I said as we greeted and did the old man hug thing – more of a chest pump than a proper arms around embrace. We hadn’t met for a few months so managed to have a good catch up chat while others from the group began to arrive.

By 9pm everyone was in the room – Fiona was looking radiant as always, Greg was morose as usual but with a glint in his eye that told you it was just something for show and underneath he was fine. Eilidh was giggling like a schoolchild before she had even touched alcohol, and Graeme was trying to sound like he was a Chief Executive even though we all knew he worked for his father’s firm and would inherit it whether he was a business guru or a complete idiot. Jenny was the level headed member of the crowd, with a masters degree to her name and a place on the board of a small Architectural partnership that was specialising in green issues and was very much on the up. Alec made up the team, still uncertain where he wanted his life to go and talking about emigration to Australia like he had done for the past 5 tears. I smiled to myself as I looked around the room. These people were my friends, warts and all, and I knew them better than anyone else on the planet.

Heather announced we would play a game where we would all be given a post-it note on our forehead with the name of a famous person on it and we would need to ask our friends questions to try to devise our given celebrity identity from responses that could only be yes or no. It was a game as old as time but when the proviso was that you could only ask the same person twice and not consecutive questions, you were forced to mingle and interact with everyone else. No “wall flowers” at this gathering! Greg managed to be first to successfully guess when he asked Eilidh if he was someone “deeply unpopular with right minded people” – bringing his usual positivity to the evening. When she said yes he said “I’m Donald Trump” and was able to remove his Post-It and relax. I was second to last when I managed to deduce that I was the late Yevgeny Prigozhin who had tried to usurp Putin’s power in Russia with the usual result.

We all got served sausage rolls, samosas and haggis pakora since none of us had succumbed to vegetarian lifestyles during our years at University and were still carnivore enough to demolish the plates presented to us. Glasses were refreshed, and everyone checked the clock to see when the big event would be taking place. It was 11.45pm – getting close to the fireworks and Auld Lang Syne when Heather announced “OK, I have a challenge for you all! In this bag I have written the titles of some of my favourite songs that mean something to me. They all have a message whether its in their title or in their lyrics so what I want is for you all to take a song from the bag and make a New Year Resolution based on the song and its message and we’ll all get together again in the summer and I want everyone to have evidence by then of having taken the song to hart and made good on their resolution.”

There was a mixture of groans and chuckles – the groans coming mainly from the males it has to be said! Heather went to her best friend Eilidh to start things off and she pulled out a small strip of paper. “Cyndi Lauper – True Colours! she announced, and Graeme shouted out “I knew she dyed her hair!” Heather smiled and said “OK, a resolution linked to that song – we’ll hear what you did in the summer!” Eilidh nodded and the bag moved on. Jenny was pleased when she read out “Paulo Nuttini – New Shoes!” and Fiona was a bit bemused with “Stevie Wonder – I Wish” but was told to listen to the lyrics and see how she felt.

Then the bag came to me. I pulled out my piece of paper and laughed “The Rembrandts – I’ll be there for you!” Heather was a huge Friends fan and knew it was likely to come up. Greg came up with “Biyonce Knowles –Single Ladies” which had the room roaring with laughter and he said “What am I meant to do with this!” which only made us laugh all the more. Graeme got “Dolly Parton – I Will Always Love You!” which made him frown somewhat and then the final pick was Alec who got “Paul Weller – The Changingman” and everyone groaned, wishing they had got one which seemed a simple invitation to buy new clothes!

Heather announced “Right, those are your songs. Get to know them and think of a resolution based on the message as you perceive it and lets see some evidence of that when we get together for a drink in the summer.” Then her attention was drawn to a countdown on the TV screen. “Oh My God – Folks, 10 seconds!! Get Ready!” We joined together in counting down the last 5 seconds of what was the “old” year and then cheered and drank a toast to the “new” as the canon on Edinburgh Castle banged to indicate the New Year had arrived. We hugged each other, drink having removed the formality and reserve we had when we had first gathered, and then the TV was turned over to one of the music stations that was playing a party mix. Champagne appeared so we could all celebrate with something bubbly and to be honest I don’t remember when or how I got home but I woke the next day with a hangover that told me I had enjoyed a late night.

The months passed and when the invitation came via e-mail from Heather to attend a summer get together at her flat I had almost forgotten about how we had agreed to get together again for “show and tell”. I felt quite pleased with myself because I had done something that fitted in well with my resolution. The post Covid work environment had meant I spent more time than before at home rather than in the office and that had opened a door I was always interested in opening while encouraging an action that this would enable. When I was growing up, we had a pet dog in the house. Buster was a golden Labrador and the best friend a kid like me could hope for, I had just left for University when my Dad told me he had died and I remember crying so hard at one of my lectures I had to lie and say it was my grandfather who had passed!

Now that I was home so much, I could get a dog for company and the regular walks would solve another issue I had noted – that working from home had meant some days I barely moved from my computer desk all day. Now I would be outside giving my new companion and myself the much needed exercise to keep us fit. I went to my local Dog Charity and took a rescue dog – a year old cockapoo which had been just too lively for its elderly owner to cope with. I considered myself to be doing a good deed giving the dog a new home and that fitted in with the Friend’s theme tune “I’ll Be There For You” so I uploaded one of the many photos of my new best friend and printed it out to take to the summer gathering, As I did so I realised I hadn’t had my usual get together with Alec and would need to apologise for not getting in touch since the Hogmanay party when I saw him.

The night of the party came around and my neighbour took “Ross” for the evening. Yes, my dog had the same name as the character in Friends but it was also because my family had links to the Ross & Cromarty area of Scotland and it was also my middle name. I told them it would be a late night but was told that wasn’t a problem and I headed off with my dogs photo and the smug satisfaction that I would be fulfilling my New Year Resolution.

Perhaps I am habitually punctual but I was first at Heather’s house that Friday night and we hugged each other as usual. “Tell me you’re seeing someone new!” she said to me eagerly and I laughed. “Heather, you’re trying to play the matchmaker with me aren’t you? There’s no romance I can tell you but there is someone new in my life but I’ll tell you who when you check our resolutions!” She smiled and said “Intriguing! I can’t wait to hear!” As we caught up with her own news, more of the gang arrived until eventually all but one had appeared. Heather checked her clock and said “We shouldn’t start till Alec is here – I got an e-mail to say he would be attending.” We agreed to wait but at that moment there was the sound of the doorbell and we all relaxed. Alec had arrived.

When Heather opened the door, however, she was met by an attractive brunette wearing a sweater dress that stopped above the knee and showed off two hairless and shapely legs that lead down to bright red three inch heels with open toes displaying manicured and varnished toes. “Sorry I’m late” she said in a husky voice as she walked confidently past her host and into the room where we were all seated. Heather followed, confused and concerned about the gatecrasher. As all heads turned to see the newcomer, she smiled broadly and said “Hi everyone – lovely to see you all again! I’m Alexis – at least I have been for the past 3 months! You might remember at Hogmanay your friend Alec got a song called The Changingman for his New Year Resolution. Well Alec took the title to heart. He had been struggling with his sexuality for years and had been cross dressing at home for some time and when he was given the song as a challenge he thought it was time to take the plunge and display full time as a woman.”

My face matched those of my other friends. We were in shock and confusion! Our friend we had known for over 10 years was stood in front of us “en femme” and convincingly so. What’s more, he had never looked happier. Alexis continued “Heather, I can’t thank you enough for giving me the push into femininity – I’ve spent years trying to pluck up the courage without success. Now I wish I had done this a decade ago!”

Heather gave Alexis a hug and then Fiona, Eilidh and Heather joined it, giggling as Alexis asked them “what do you think, girls, can I come out the closet now?” They all gushed that Alexis looked fabulous and they were in awe at her figure. Greg, Graeme and I looked at each other and shook our heads. None of us had seen this coming and like typical men none of us knew just how to react. I was particularly torn. Alec had been my closest University friend and someone I thought I knew better than the others. He had completely caught me off guard with this transformation and I felt slightly angry that I hadn’t known or been asked for advice or support. At the same time another emotion was making things more difficult, I was finding Alexis attractive.

“OK so that’s my Resolution contribution” Alexis announced with a smile. “Who’s next?”

Everyone looked at each other and shrugged shoulders. “Em, I don’t think anyone else has anything as dramatic to report but can we go around the room and see what you’ve committed to this year?” Heather asked and Eilidh started “Yea, well, I got True Colours and I took that as a call to see people for who they really are and so I got back in touch with my sister who I haven’t spoken to in 4 years since she came out as lesbian. I realised that this was more about my attitude to her rather than her attitude to me and she is still the sister I loved before. My resolution was to rebuild our relationship and here’s a photo of the two if us together at the LGBTQ Mardi Gras last month.”
We smiled, hugged and congratulated Eilidh and the stories began to flow.

Fiona said that after listening to “I Wish” she had looked back at her past when she was at her happiest and realised she wanted to work in the Childcare sector helping disadvantaged children have he happiness she had enjoyed at school and was already attending classes to gain a qualification to allow her to make the career change. Greg had taken “Single Ladies” to realise he had been too scared of commitment in his relationships to date and had made a resolution to be more open about his feelings and be more accepting of the feelings of others, As a result he had started seeing a girl from his office and his face softened and a smile appeared which gave everyone in the room a shock and a clear indication that his days as a grouch were numbered.

Graeme announced that Dolly Parton’s iconic love song had made him reconsider his own emotional commitment and he made his resolution to rebuild the relationship with his estranged wife who he knew was still fond of him. He had come to realise that the marriage had failed because he had not been mature enough at the time and he was taking small steps back starting with calling off their divorce.

Jenny said her “New Shoes” inspiration had shown her she was too work orientated and had made a resolution to do more things away from the work environment. She had joined a rambling club, bought new walking boots and was now spending weekends doing hill walking with a mixed crowd and was loving the open air and exercise as well as the social aspect. She said that she was fond of one of the male participants and could see a relationship potential for the future.

Eyes fell to me and I explained how “I’ll Be There For You” had inspired me to adopt an abandoned dog and give it a new home and presented Ross’s photo to the smiles of the audience. Heather then brought out a bottle of champagne and said “Lets all drink to the Resolutions we have made and the better lives we are going to live as a result!” We clinked glasses and supped our drink and the music began and everyone sat down to chat to their friends. I found myself next to Alexis and I turned to her and said “I wish I had known and could have been a help to you!” She smiled and said “I had an internal battle only I could resolve, Tim. I hope we can still remain friends?” I reached across and took her hand in mine. “Alexis, I’ve let our friendship slip over the years. I promise to be a more frequent part of your life again and whatever happens in the months ahead, I’ll be there for you!” I said and watched as Alexis smiled.

“Sounds like your resolution isn’t just for your dog, then?” she said and I smiled. “I promise to be your best friend, Alexis” I said and looked her in the eye, The distance between us reduced in slow motion as we both realised our bond was as strong as it ever had been and my world stood still as Alexis’s ruby red lips met mine. When they parted both our mouths were smiling and I felt Alexis squeeze my hand. “I’d like us to find the closeness we once shared again, Tim. You’re a very special friend and I’ve always looked up to you as someone I could rely on.” Without invitation, I moved in again for another kiss, realising that I had found someone I loved and who loved me back.

“Hey Heather?” Graeme called out. “You never told us YOUR resolution! What was YOUR song?” All our attention turned to our host who was stood laughing. “My favourite song is Sting’s Spread A Little Happiness and I think I achieved that with all of you!”

Alexis giggled “You know, Tim, we really should thank Heather for reuniting us and giving us a future together!” and that was exactly what we did three years later when she was the chief bridesmaid at our wedding. That year we both made a resolution to live happily ever after and we intend to do just that.