Willie's Long Ride Is Reaching The End

You know what they say: You can't make old friends. Country icons Loretta Lynn and Willie Nelson enjoyed some quality time together while in Nashville for the 2019 CMA Awards on Wednesday night (Nov. 13).

On Thursday (Nov. 14), Lynn posted a photo of herself and Nelson to Instagram; the two are sitting at the table on Nelson's tour bus, chatting with each other as Nelson smiles. "It was so good to see so many friends. I loved catching up with my buddy Willie Nelson!" Lynn writes of her CMA Awards experience.

Nelson was part of the CMA Awards performance lineup this year for the first time since 2012; he performed "Rainbow Connection" with Kacey Musgraves. Lynn, meanwhile, was not onstage during the big show, but had a place of honor in the audience as a group of female artists performed an opening medley that featured Lynn's song "You're Looking at Country."

It's been a relatively slow year for Lynn, who suffered a stroke in May of 2017 and fell and broke her hip in early 2018. She's stayed largely out of the public eye, save for a massive birthday party at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena back in April and making public statements on social media to shut down tabloid rumors about her health and promote the recent Lifetime film Patsy & Loretta.

Nelson, meanwhile, is still actively touring, but televised performances from the country icon have been few and far between in recent years. Earlier this year, the 86-year-old had to cancel multiple performances due to "breathing problems," and has dealt with issues stemming from emphysema and pneumonia sporadically over the past five years.