And that’s when a hand reached out, drawing her up and offering a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t worry about her,” said the smiling classmate who had stepped in for the new girl in distress. “Come and play with us.”
“It was beautiful and that was it,” Rebecca says today of meeting her best friend close to 40 years ago – a woman she says is the kindest and smartest human she knows. “That was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. She was a force. I remember my mum meeting her for the first time and literally saying to me, ‘That girl is going to be someone’.”
“That girl” is Chrissie Swan. And it’s unsurprising to hear this tale, given Chrissie, 48, has built a successful media career on being a friendly face with a ready laugh, the woman you are sure you’d get on with like a house on fire, a kind and nurturing soul.
“I’m not sure I remember that story,” Chrissie herself tells The Weekly while reflecting on the long-ago incident. “But [Rebecca] told me and I believe her. It sounds like the sort of thing I would do, I guess. That’s the thing, you never forget when people are kind to you.”
This story is from the March 2022 edition of The Australian Women's Weekly.
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This story is from the March 2022 edition of The Australian Women's Weekly.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
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