Making memories one day at a time.......and then I write about it.

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

A Visitor


Donna came to visit.  All the way from West Virginia.  She came to meet Kristen and I and stayed at Kristen's house for several days.  There is always a little bit of anxiety when meeting someone for the first time.


Will they like me, will we have anything to talk about?  Will they have wished they'd stayed in a hotel so they could get away in the night and sneak back to West Virginia without us knowing?  That sort of thing.


The long awaited day arrived and Kristen and I drove up to the airport to meet Donna.  We waited and waited and watched every single person who came to baggage wondering, anticipating, laughing/giggling, and then....... we saw her!

I don't know about Donna but I know our anxiety melted at that moment as we embraced and our eyes got a bit watery because of allergies and we were laughing and standing back and looking at each other.  Looking at each other in person.


We'd 'conversed' for several years through our blogs and Facebook and emails.  You think you know a person, and there is a certain level of intimacy....... and then you meet for the first time face to face and you breathe a sigh of relief that you did know this person like you thought you did and they are just as ever wonderful as you'd hoped!


We spent several days crafting and laughing and talking about our love of God.  It felt as if a long lost sister had come home and we started where we left off.


On the day we had to take Donna back to the airport, we drover her up into the mountains so she could see our fall colors.  The mountains did not disappoint.  They put on a spectacular show.



The colors were vivid and bright.  We'd just had a rain so the air was clear and clean.  The mountains, majestic and adorned with a costume full of spectacular color.


We needed to get Donna to the airport but we kept driving further up the canyon just to see a little bit more. Just around that next bend and then we'd turn around..........


And then we'd drive a bit further...........


And why pray tell do I not have any photos of Donna that can prove she was really on this adventure?


Because when I took photos of Donna, I used Kristen's camera so we'll have to wait for Kristen to do a write up about this past weekend.  She'll do a far better job than I anyway......


Donna did a write up and has some photos posted on her blog.  You can read about her view of the adventure here.  (Click on the word here.)

I did how ever catch this.......  which speaks of how we all felt.  The beauty around us, spent with each other, trying to take it all in...................  an exultant YES!!  How could we stand it!?



We were like children in a candy store.  Gasping and pointing our cameras.  Look here at this display!


Look over here!  Hurry!  Come look!


And nestled down next to a little stream, I found these dainty little pretties.  Quiet and content in the splendor around them.


Spilling forth.  Happy.  Bubbly.  That was us.

43 comments:

  1. so how come you can go and visit friends but not your sister? Huh?

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    1. SHE came and visited ME!!!!!

      You come visit me and I'll write a post about it too!!!

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    2. If memory serves I visited you last. . . .

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    3. Yeah but it was too short so it doesn't count. :D

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  2. Oh my. Those colours! Those photos! And blast this undignified visit-envy that has overcome me. Seriously, you guys, this is just incredible that you all met IN PERSON. And that is one seriously weird sentence. The meeting in person part, I mean. Who'd have thunk there was any other way to meet someone? I must be getting old. I remember records and record players too, you know. Actually, I've got a whole "studio" full of the things. Now I'm just rambling. It's a symptom of advanced visit-envy.

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    1. You know how to fix that.......... :D

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    2. Yes, but no sneaking up there without me!

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    3. We'll the three of us sneak up and capture Wabi. We'll be like the Lost Boys in Peter Pan refusing to grow up and kidnapping Wabi for ransom.

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    4. I'm in! Meet you in Chicago! Let's take the train.

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    5. I've taken that train many a time. The SM's family lives in Chicago.

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    6. Oh. I wanna take a train...never rode one. Well, except for the old steam engine one at Cass Scenic Railroad.

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    7. It was fun...except for the cinder bits in your eyeballs!

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    8. Oh! That is a problem........ I'm sure I could find an oil for that. ;)

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    9. Okay, but if I volunteer does it still count as kidnapping? Hmmm, if it does, maybe we could get the ransom money in advance - not because my crew would be eagre to get rid of me or anything - but because the spending money would be nice!

      A train trip. Dreamy. Do those still exist? They've been rippng the tracks out 'round these parts. We'll have to act quickly!

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    10. We'll have to act quickly before the plan gets derailed. Ha.

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    11. Derailed!!! hahahahaha!!! Awesome pun! Oh you're on one Wabi!

      So, does this mean your game? You're willing? You say it, and we'll make it happen!! :D

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  3. Wow, Rachel, great pictures. Yours are as good as it looked in person! I have that same one of Kristen rejoicing.

    If only we could live in that "crafting and laughing and talking about our love of God" place. Really my allergies tried to kick in several times while we were together...love that softness of heart and eyes!

    Soon and very soon...

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    1. Darn allergies. They sneak up on you at the most inopportune time!

      I could use that place and space you are talking about. I didn't accomplish much of anything that was in the way of fun today. Just an entire table full of folded laundry, much cleaning and straightening, cooking, more cleaning and too many dagblasted socks on the floor!!!!

      Can I just say again how mortified I am that you saw my house in the state that it was in????!!!!! :D I'll never live that down!!!

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    2. Your house? I don't know what that means exactly, do you? But there is nothing for you to live down! You are way braver than me and you have at least 7 more excuses than me for not having a 'show' house. You have a home! I loved recognizing the bits I had seen in other blog pictures...I really did think part of your house was wooden.
      I don't have to cook at all this weekend...just buckwheat cakes every day from the Firemen!

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    3. Sigh........ I've no more surprises..... ;)

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    4. pfffft....you are a constant surprise!

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  4. We hit the peak just right but I think the drought also helped with the colors. I've never seen them like this! The reds and oranges..... You'd think we lived back east!

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  5. Rachel - this is a brilliant piece of storytelling. And these photos are absolutely breathtaking. You made art, baby - and poetry on so many levels. I am - close to speechless. And I love the photo of ME!! I want to own it. Today I spent all day trying to rescue the database files that will be rendered total gibberish by my system upgrade. My brain was spinning by the time I was finished. And not at all satisfying. But maybe tomorrow I will put my own images up, and you will be in them, as will Donna. We celebrate in the image. It's lovely.

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    1. Coming from you, this is a compliment indeed!!! Thank you!!!

      It was such a fun weekend. I do wish less was going on at my home so that I could have joined you more...... of all the lousy luck! If it's not The Natives........... it's their pets! (Look, I didn't use an apostrophe in Natives. You proud of me? :D )

      I keep waiting, looking for your write up! I figured you were busy with something computer related that would look like gibberish to me.

      You may have the image of you. I love it so much because it is so you. You who I love with all my heart!!! Dear one!

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    2. I AM SO PROUD OF YOU!!! I really am - it's not easy to break a habit like that. My baby's growing UP!! Today, Cam had the kids and I had to finish up my database mess - which I did. The new operating system costs $20 but i have to update three major programs so I can still live in the manner to which I am accustomed. Then Cam and the kids and I went up the canyon - and THE LEAVES ARE GONE. Faded. Amazing. It's a miracle that we happened to go up there with Donna - if it hadn't been for her, we'd have missed the whole thing. And I made that "championship cheese" I pinned the other day. Mine was ugly - but YUMMMMM. And I did a lot of tractor work this morning. So tomorrow??? (the love flows both ways)

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    3. Just had to run outside. I FORGOT THE HORSES. But it was cool down there, and they saw us and just went in like a bunch of lovely cows. As I was saying, do you suppose we've actually traded hearts?

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    4. The leaves are gone???? Are you kidding me???? Nooooo! I wanted family photooooooos! Argh!

      I am glad we got to see them with Donna. That she got to see them.

      Trading hearts. Like Valentine hearts with cute sayings on them. :D

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  6. Can't wait to see your piece, Kristen. I took that same picture of you being all joy-full! You are both such an inspiration to me....and others, I'm sure. I like hanging out with people who are far better than me in so many things...I will learn and grow.

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    1. Donna! Get over here so I can smack your bum! The very idea........... You, my dear friend, are an inspiration!! Truly. The post you wrote on Conversations...... guess what? I learned and I grew from it. Yesterday I did a spur of the moment thing for someone else because of that post. I probably wouldn't have done it other wise. You are good for me. :D

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    2. I did a piece of art work once called "Stretch Reach Grow Teach" I think that is a good plan. We'll be like Gumbys...do you even remember Gumby?

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    3. Thank heaven Rachel was here to catch this - Pfffffff!!!!! Tomorrow, I catch up. Inspiration? It's your middle name, kiddo. And maybe if I stretch, all the kinks will finally straighten out and my hand won't go numb when I'm dragging the sprayer around the pasture.

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    4. Maybe next time I'm out there we should try some yoga!

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  7. Wow Rachel you all sound like you had the most special time! The photos are beautiful and I too love your one of Kristen 'in the moment'. How lovely to have Donna visit and to share a collective memory together xx

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    1. Jenni!! Care to cross the big blue ocean?? :D

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  8. Wonderful times indeed. Moments like this where you meet and connect with somone for the first time, discovering shared interests and that you have so much in common are very special but add in that beautiful autumn landscape and you have pure magic!

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    1. You'd have fit right in Julie! I know you would have! We'd have all been at home with each other sitting on Kristen's back porch basking in each others conversations.

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  9. How delightful to read about this momentous meeting from your perspective, Kristen's and Donna's too. She seems to fit right in with you and K, the Renaissance dresses and the crafting and the enormous delight with the fall colors. Yes - she's a sister, no doubt about it.

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    1. The only thing missing was.............. YOU!

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