Monday, May 20, 2019

Goodbye and Hello.

It is a misty-moisty Monday here. The trees and the shrubs and the flowers and the grass all love the coolness of the gentle rain.

We have our first rose. Gertrude is her name. 

This weekend brought us two significant events. 

On Saturday we gathered with friends to say farewell to our dear friend Mavis. 
Mavis was a member of the Friday morning breakfast group long before I came on the scene. A fellow teacher with Tom at Des Moines Elementary school, she was well loved by many family members, friends and former students. She died just a week shy of her 92nd birthday, her death caused by a brain bleed that was the result of a fall. We had been picking her up every Friday morning from her assisted living apartment to take her to breakfast, and then, suddenly she is gone. We are all missing her. 

On Sunday we traveled south to Vernonia, Oregon, a three hour drive each way, at the invitation of my sister Ilene, in order to meet her retired teacher friend, Kathy. Kathy and her husband Dan now live in Minnesota, but had just spent a week on the Oregon coast, and traveled to Vernonia for a day to catch up with old friends, including Ilene. 
Kathy and Dan on the Oregon coast.

Ilene calls Kathy and me twins from different mothers. Through Ilene we are friends on Facebook, but had never actually met in person. 

Now we have. Ilene was right, we are very much alike, and the connection was immediate. We spent several hours sharing stories of or lives, teaching experiences, and, yes, some of our common liberal political views. Ilene and Kathy had a chance to catch up with family news and who they knew when and where they are now. We discovered even more things in common. And Tom and Dan hit it off too, at least when they could get a word in. Tom is a retired elementary teacher and Dan is a former elementary school librarian. 

After hugs and farewells, Kathy and Dan went off to their next visit and we went out to dinner with Ilene before beginning our drive back home. It was a trip well worth the making. 


11 comments:

  1. That sounds like a very fun little adventure. Nothing like meeting with kindred spirits.

    ReplyDelete
  2. That would have been a very enjoyable visit.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Your trip sounds great. It is fun to meet new friends.
    I like seeing those quail trotting across your lawn. A nice touch. There is a Starling nesting across the street that calls like a Norther Bobwhite Quail from time to time.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm just reading a book that I want to make sure both of you know about - The Library Book by Susan Orlean. It may sound dry but it isn't - starts with the L.A. library fire during the Chernobyl disaster. Once you start reading it you will understand what a good read it is.
    You're welcome!

    ReplyDelete
  5. It's wonderful that you and Tom both made a solid connection. Too bad they live so far away.

    ReplyDelete
  6. So sorry that Mavis will no longer be attending your Friday morning get togethers. What fun to meet new friends.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I am sorry about your loss of a friend, but how exhilarating to meet new ones.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I do love the way you mixed textures and sizes in your garden...I am the type of gardener that sees something they like at the store and then comes home and plops it down where there is a bit of bare space! NOT at all the way one should garden.

    ReplyDelete
  9. A sad time remembering one who has gone on to greener pastures but then again a fun time meeting friends and family. Circle of life I suppose.
    Your yard is gorgeous.
    At just the right angle and on a back road Mt. Baker looks like it is right behind the little Fir/Conway Church. Very cool indeed
    MB

    ReplyDelete
  10. What fun to spend time with such lovely people. You had a day of sad losses and happy friendship. I guess that's the balance of life.

    ReplyDelete
  11. My sympathy to you and all who loved Mavis. It is hard to lose good friends:(

    ReplyDelete

I would love to read your comments. Since I link most posts to Facebook, you may comment there if you do not have an account. I have eliminated Anonymous comments due to spammers.