So what was it that gave me a feeling of such peace and well-being? It wasn’t a miracle tonic or psychiatric drugs or yoga that made me so completely serene. The truth is much purer and far less complicated. I went to visit my dearest friends in Virginia.
The trip there was a nightmare, but the delays and missed connections didn’t faze me, because I knew where I was going and the people I would be with were magical.
It was my precious friend Claudia’s birthday. Her husband and her sister helped me plot a surprise weekend and I was the birthday present! When I arrived at the house, Claudia and her sister Clover were swinging on the porch swing. You may not be aware of this, but all Southern women are mandated to own a porch swing. Even this girl from Los Angeles connects with her inner “belle” when swinging. When I have sat on that very same swing on previous visits, a demure coquettish-ness came over me instantly. If I would swing long enough, my speech would even change, with the word “please” becoming 2 syllables. I spent so much time swinging, at one point I had to hold back a “fiddle-dee-dee”.
Anyway, back to my story. I could see that the girls were puzzled as to who just drove up. When I got out of the car and yelled “Happy Birthday!” there were tears all around.
From that moment on, it was beyond wonderful. We talked, caught up, drank wine, listened to classical music, played with their dog Sam and dined at home. Claudia’s handsome husband Bob made the most spectacular fried shrimp. She really needs to keep it a secret that he can cook. He is already worth stealing. Claudia needs to be careful.
We all went to bed. I occupied the guest bedroom, but Clover got stuck sleeping on the sofa bed in the office. She was visiting for the weekend, as well, but because she is the gracious Virginia girl that she is, she pretended that it didn’t matter that she slept on the pull-out couch. She assured me that all that was important was that we were all together. Have any of you ever slept on one of those couches? I am sure if they had existed at the time, they would have been used as means of torture during the Spanish Inquisitions. I didn’t even realize until morning that she had to move the treadmill to roll out the bed and then move it back again after she returned her “bed” to its life as a couch. Clover, you are a saint.
The next day was St. Patrick’s Day. The ladies all went shopping in downtown Roanoke. Everyone around us was dressed in green, even the dogs and the infants. The stores were all decked out with shamrock décor and the spirit of the holiday was infectious. In Los Angeles, St. Patrick’s Day is only a big deal in bars. People wear green, but not emerald green. If you bust someone for forgetting what day it is, they will point to their khaki pants and try to pass it off as green.
We were invited for corned beef and cabbage at the home of friends. They live on this amazing farm with rolling hills and a stream running through it. The property is acres and acres and I feel like I am inside an English landscape painting when I am there. The friends, Jonathan and Diana, maintain this huge place all by themselves. I will never complain about feeding my dogs or cleaning my house or pulling weeds in my 10’ X 10’ patio again. Diana feeds horses, sheep, dogs, a husband and more. She maintains the house and does back-breaking work outside as part of her normal day. I bitch every time I have to haul the groceries inside. She can spin circles around any ranch hand and she is this tiny little leprechaun-sized woman. There must be something in the Virginia dirt that makes people euphoric. She is so happy with her life. I was so happy to be there and spend time with them. Being at their home warmed my soul and also my tummy. The dinner was ridiculously delicious.
I was there for 3 perfect days. I never watched a minute of television, but I sat on the back deck with Claudia, Clover and Bob a lot. We talked and laughed and reminisced. The whole time I was there I was more relaxed than any spa could ever make me. I slept like a log, ate like a queen and basked in the sunshine that good friends create.
You know what they say about friends, don’t you? Friends are the family you choose. So true...
