Friday Five: Counting Blessings

Newest family member: Daniel

Terri gives us a short and sweet Friday Five at RevGalBlogPals:

Offer five gratitudes you recognize in your life.

OK, then, in no particular order:

• Very good health.  I was blessed with great genetics and have continued to be blessed by health care that's been accessible enough and affordable enough. I'm approaching another birthday and I am grateful for how it's going.
• Meaningful work. At this moment, I am grateful that my work life is alive and well and going in some good new directions. Recently, when I thought it might very well be over with, I was called yet again. 
• Gluten Free Pizza.  I made this recipe for GF pizza crust today for a pizza lunch that I've been wanting. It was easy and it's really really good!  Toppings:  fresh basil, home grown tomatoes, onion and red pepper.
• Cooler weather.  I can feel autumn in the air. And it feels really really good.
• Family, family everywhere.  I am really grateful for a scattered family. It's the fact, so let's celebrate the joys of it! They are scattered all the way from Portland, OR to the deep South to NYC and Vermont.  I'm grateful for the experience of anticipating trips to visit them and looking forward to their visits with me.  In the next six weeks, I get to go to Portland, OR and Baton Rouge, LA.  So grateful!  

BONUS: An unexpected blessing today was being touched by  "The Place I Want to Get Back To," the Mary Oliver poem posted by Terri.  Thank you, Terri, for the many ways you speak to our spirits.

Friday Five: Joy of Friendship

The RevGalBlogPals Friday Five today is about friendship:

Who is the first friend you remember from childhood?  During my preschool days, Yvonne and I were inseparable at school.  One day, she walked in front of someone who was swinging and got kicked in the head and there was blood and she had to leave school suddenly.  Happier memories involved field trip days and our first experiences of going on a "trip" with packed lunches.

Have you ever received an unexpected gift from a friend?  A friend gave me a going away party when we moved from Philadelphia to Dallas.  The party itself -- of young women from our Sunday School class -- was a huge gift, though not unexpected.  The unexpected gifts were that each woman had embroidered a tea towel for me.  (Remember:  Young women, Dallas, luncheon party, in the mid-80s!)  The most unexpected and long-remembered gift was when she played the then-new song "Friends are Friends Forever" and we all cried together.

Is there an old friend you wish you could find again? Or have you found one via social media or the Internet?  Yes to the first question.  There are a couple of people I wouldn't mind finding again, including the women at the party I mentioned above, but I'm not looking for them, either.  To the second question:  Many of our high school friends are reconnecting via Facebook and have had a couple of get-togethers that I have been unable to attend so far.  There is a plan for us to gather for our (*cough*) 40th high school reunion next year, but in a location far, far from any official reunion function(s). 

Do you like to get your good friends together in a group, or do you prefer your friends one on one?  Slight preference for one-on-one.

Does the idea of Jesus as a friend resonate with you?  Yes, among a host of other images.

Best Friends

Marilyce and Chelsea

I don't call any one person my "bestest" because I am blessed with more than one amazing special friend.  When I refer to one of them, I call him/her my "best friend" not because I can't choose, but because it's a true description for several people in my life. They are the "through thick and thin" people in my life; they are the ones who have navigated the *stuff* in my life when it's been piled high and deep.

We took a vacation together.  
We went on retreat to plan and dream.  
We talked for hours, long distance, from coffee shops and bookstore.
We hiked for miles and miles.  
We drank wine and dreamed of Maine cottages.  
We held each other for dear life.  
We made worship together and we slayed dragons together.  
We kept our cool.

Today I had a long and wonderful conversation with one of you.  And it was delicious!

(Great pic, girls!)