Thank you to the Two Writing Teachers and the Slice of Life writing community for providing this opportunity to share our "slices." Thanks to Stacey, Anna, Beth, Tara, Dana and Betsy for creating a place for us to share our work. Check out the other slices and join in the fun!
Put me in a social setting and I'm good to go. I enjoy getting to know people. I like to hear about their life experiences and feel there's so much to learn from each other. Yesterday I found myself thinking about one of those connections when I saw a house for sale.
My husband and I lived in a GREAT home when we were first married. It was just a cozy, gumwood trimmed home with tons of character, brightness, and memories. Just this week we noticed it was for sale. Of course this led to some online snooping around the realtor's website so we could see the inside and it brought back such awesome
m e m o r i e s of
bringing home our first puppy
hosting our notorious New Year's eve parties
making my first lasagna
backyard birthday parties
meeting new neighbors
lots of renovation projects
chasing the puppy down a busy section of town
landscaping projects
yardwork
firsts for everything
The memories were flowing, flying, rushing, swarming. Things I had forgotten about even.
Then, I began to think about Valerie and Walt. They were the owners who sold us that home. They had only moved around the corner when we began living there. We'd see them in the neighborhood and at mass. We somehow kept in touch over these years and with the help of Facebook, we have continued to maintain and grow a beautiful friendship even though we are now all an hour apart. This friendship carried over to my parents and now my mom and Valerie keep connected so much so, that Valerie sent my mom a beautiful prayer shawl when my mom broke her shoulder in December. My mom found this so comforting in a time of so much pain. To think this chain reaction was set in motion all because we bought our home from them.
Yes, in that home we had all the right ingredients to stir, bake and serve up some warm memories, but we also got something more. A friendship.
I treasure the relationships or friendships that are formed in unusual settings. The fact that your friendship with Valerie and Walt has lasted this long shows how much you value friendships! Truly special!
ReplyDeleteThese are special memories to reflect on and cherish. I remember our first house-we were devastated when it went up for sheriff sale-then someone bought and refurbished it-we saw recent pics as it was on the website...
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful memories!! Friendships formed like this are always so special!
ReplyDeleteI felt so many emotions as I read this wonderful piece. I got chills from the memories, I felt teary about your mother and the prayer shawl. Without our connections, are we really human? Thanks for the reminder.
ReplyDeleteI hope that your new home has just as many special memories!
ReplyDeleteOur first home was an old farmhouse. The loving conditions were not great but the memories sure were. I love how your home led to connections.
ReplyDeleteHow special! God is so amazing. I love how He brings people together.
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