Friends Are So Special

For so many years of my life I have moved from one place to another, almost every year, for the first eighteen years of my life, so I never really had a chance to make life-long friends such as 1HW has. One dear friend Pat has remained a close friend since our senior year of high school, but few have remained other then that. As a result, I have come to cherish the friends we/I have made during recent years, some of whom have been co-workers, and others who have just appeared. One of the most special of those is Julie, as well as her husband Ron, who has also become a dear friend.

When we arrived in Durango today, Julie was right there to greet us! What a terrific surprise! Her husband Ron and our mutual friend Byron were out exploring the area mountains, which all of us have known that Byron loves to do. They had left at 9:00, and Julie had expected them back by 5:00 pm or so. However, when we went over to their place at 5:30 for Happy Hour before our steak dinners, she had still not heard from them. So the three of us continued our non-stop catching up, as usual, until Ron finally called around six something to say he and Byron had stopped to get hamburgers. WHAT? They would be back in an hour and a half. WHEN? Immediately my dear sweet, thoughtful husband said, "The heck with them! Let's go into town and have a good dinner!" By this time, we have become quite familiar with Durango, so we promptly headed for the Ore House, one of our favorites, where we could get immediate seating in the bar with a 15% discount! How could we argue with that? Wonderful meal, entertaining bartender, delightful server talking to us on the side, all while we had good drinks, fine food, and excellent company. Then we headed to one of our all-time favorite places, the Strater Hotel to the Diamond Belle Gay Nineties bar for piano music. We all had a wonderful time, but the best part of all was to be with Julie!

Julie is almost 20 years younger than I am, but somehow the age difference disappears in my mind because we have such a good time together! She is a tall, slender, young blonde, while I am shorter, rounder, silver, and older. But all of those differences seem to melt when we are together. As a result, the three of us had a perfectly wonderful evening enjoying everyone and everything around us (although missing Ron and wishing he had been with us instead of eating hamburgers with Byron). It just helped me to realize how important our friends are and how much we enjoy them! We arrived home quite cheerfully, perhaps due somewhat to Lemon Drop Martinis or perhaps just due to dear Jules and, of course, to 1HW, my sweetie! Thanks to you both, my dear friend and my husband, for a delightful evening!

A New Start, Again

How wonderful it is to be married to my very best friend! As the rain began falling briefly, we just sat outside and talked, the same usual pattern we have followed for these 21 plus years. We tried to clear our minds, think about what is ahead, what has happened, and be together on our future course, whatever it may be. We have only a vague idea of what we are doing and where we are going, in the long run. Right now, it seems to be important to both of us to go to Friday Harbor and be near close friends. That feels good. Beyond that, we have no idea. Some people find that difficult to imagine; however, the Spirit keeps us moving on, in what we have begun to hear and know here from John (our pastor) as "the Journey." That seems to be the best way we can phrase it. We are on a journey, and where that takes us, we have no idea. Maybe that is why we call ourselves "The Happy Wanderers," because the wandering continues, totally out of OUR control as to where we will next go. It is really rather amazing, as we reflect on the total times of our lives together, that we have been so purposefully led, without our having much to say about it all. And so, as we begin to leave Kerrville at this time, we are thankful for the people, the wonderful times, the amazing friendships, and the opportunity to grow. We will try to forget the recent discouraging experiences and instead focus on the future positive hopes and possibilities! And, as our friend Paula always reminds us in her daily readings, "Keep a smile for everyone you meet!" Thank you, Paula! We will try to spread the joy! Happy travels!