Grace Notes

Summer Friend, left, and Punchy.

Punchy has been away since Friday morning! It's a long story, but her young grandma* arranged for her to go on her very first plane trip--to TURKS & CAICOS!!!!--as a guest of Summer [code name], above, and Summer's grandparents. Punchy has spent other happy vacay time with those three, but Summer lives many states away and they only communicate via text, phone or FaceTime. It was a huge surprise for both girls, who only found out when they got to the airport, separately, to board a chartered plane. Needless to say, they are delighted. And it shows. It's almost like "The Parent Trap," when twins Annie and Hallie are reunited in the summer....

Hence, I had time for Friday and Saturday night dates with Dan; and for that long visit with Sis and Uncle Jackie. Time to come to her lovely home in Connecticut; time to walk the dog with her and go to gentle yoga class this morning. Time to remember her husband with her. It's only been two months. He left a big gap. Tomorrow I go back home. Punchy lands back with us on Friday night.

So grateful for the grace notes in my life:

1. Mimi's wonderful dream-trip plan, hatched months ago with her long-time close friends--Summer's grandparents, who offered to take Punchy along.
2. My sister, who is generous, smart, kind and witty. She and I have our own language, as sisters do--references to our maternal Irish grandparents, Jim and Alice Mahon, our uncles, Dad, the people we loved and the family lore that shaped us. We can say "Nederlander" and it instantly transports us back to a specific moment on a marshy Cape Cod nature trail several summers back. When we talk about serving cake like Uncle Anthony did, we and our cousin Linda know that means giant, usually even, slices, cut with glee. Should the topic of a quiche dish come up, we immediately remember Uncle Jim, Sis's godfather, who lugged a nice white one around the mall once; it was her Christmas gift. If we talk about sex, we laugh about the stereotypes our mischievous grandmother told us, about the neighbor in her apartment building whose husband came home at lunch for a romp, etc.......
3. My husband, who is earnest. When my depression lifted, I saw the proud square of his shoulders in his blue plaid shirt, his due diligence in getting us groceries at the best price, his joy over our upcoming family camping trip at Lily Bay on Moosehead Lake in Maine next week.
4. My friend Elaine, who lent me her car to get to class [40 minutes away] on Monday night.
5. My flowers in the garden.
6. A nice warm shower.
7. Delicious seafood dinner out--salad, grouper, baked sweet potato.....
8. Sis's excellent coffee.
9. My editor and my portable work at the moment--I brought my laptop and my assignments.
10. Prayer. 
11. Pretty clouds.
12. The moon.
13. And lucky #13, the presence of mind, after days of darkness, to notice these grace notes and realize that I cannot change the past, cannot erase mistakes, but can move forward and act differently. I made a mess of communicating with my Figgy.

Good night to you.

*Mimi is the mother of Punchy's dad, who died when Punch was a baby.