The Most Wonderful Tiiiiiime of the Year

This weekend is my annual Girls Group Trip to the Lakes (Lake Tippecanoe--isn't that a great name for a lake?) My group of friends, which has been meeting each Wednesday evening for several years, is given one or two weekends each summer by the parents of one of us to kick back and have some fun

OR, run out of gas and get stuck in lake weeds.

OR, sing Karaoke.

OR, get sunburned.

OR make fun of each others' snoring.

We are "mature" females but not always "grown up" females, if you get my ... drift. I cannot wait.

Other than a yearly vacation with your family, do you have any summer traditions?

Watermelon

Watermelon. It's a feel-good food, evoking memories of long summer days, juice spilling from your chin onto your shirt, weekends at the lake, picnics, the Fourth of July and seed-spitting contests.

I was slicing a watermelon today, and another kind of memory came to mind.

A couple of years ago, when my friend Diane was gravely ill with cancer and staying in the hospital, she was craving watermelon. At this point, she was only receiving nourishment intravenously or by sipping a little bit of liquid. Her daughter, the same age as my Katie, and her daughter's father worked hard to find watermelon in early spring so that they could freeze the juice and make watermelon popsicles for her. It was quite a feat, and I know her daughter felt so good to be able to do that for her mother.

I remember being so sad when the realization hit me: "She has actually eaten her last meal? She will never chew any food again? No, this is it. She will never enjoy watermelon or any other food again." I was overcome with grief that she was slipping away, having one worldly delight after another taken from her. And now it was food, one of our most basic needs and pleasures. We take food for granted, we grouse about it, critique it, yammer about it, praise it, obsess about it. We focus our social events around food. Some of our dearest family memories revolve around the sharing of food and then the passing of the recipes to our children.

To never taste food again--It seemed such a cruel thing to live through before passing. It was hard to watch her body slowly trickle away when she always generated so much so much life and energy. She was one of the most enthusiastic people I've ever known.

So when I sink my teeth into a triangle of watermelon now, I think of Diane, and for a moment, I re-live the grief of the watermelon moment. But then I remember that the best way I can move on and still cherish her is to live in the moment the way she did, to really appreciate and enjoy things. Don't get me wrong; she made plans like everyone else. But she had a wonderful ability to be in the moment, to be "into" whomever she was conversing with, to be "into" whatever activity we were doing (such as Girls Group day at the lake) or to be "into" whatever we were enjoying, like rich holiday foods or refreshing watermelon.

Since that time, I have never taken a piece of juicy watermelon for granted again. The bigger lessons for me throughout the journey with Diane are too numerous to go into here, but the smaller ones are meaningful, too.

Like how to really appreciate a red, sweet bite of summer. Diane, I love and miss you!

Weekend Pictures and Other Fiascos

I should probably call this the 2nd Cup Weekend Re-LID, shouldn't I?

Speaking of lids ... I wore a brand new shirt to church Sunday morning, bought a skinny vanilla latte with whip (yeah, I know, contradictory), put the lid on it, sat down in church, took a drink and immediately spilled it down the front of me, right side only.

Shades of the nursing days, ladies.

Saturday, I had lunch with a friend who moved 10 years ago and another friend, so that was good to get caught up and to hear her exciting stories because this woman has THE most intriguing life of anyone I know. And I can't tell you more or she would have to kill you. She is not a spy, but her stories are that good and that serious. Seriously. Seriously serious.

Also, on Saturday I went with Kristin to see Leap Year, starring Amy Adams. It's pretty cute, and if you like romantic comedies, you'll like this one. I enjoyed the Irish accents more than a wee bit. It's rated PG, which I prefer because I'm a prudish nerd. I'm not sure why, but I've seen more movies in the last month than I saw in the entire year. Best one of all: Sherlock Holmes.

After church on Sunday, my Wednesday night Girls Group lunched and celebrated a birthday at Panera, my favorite restaurant, for Diane, seated next to me here, my sweet friend who is still beating the crap out of cancer.

Here she is opening my gift to her: "Cuddle Duds," super-soft long underwear. Hey, don't knock it until you've lived on the frozen tundra.

Diane is my hero. What this woman has endured in the last two years is unbelievable, and yet her faith and attitude are stunning testimonies to the grace of God. Happy Birthday, Diane!

Immediately after that party, we surreptitiously headed back to our church to celebrate the 40th birthday of ANOTHER woman in that group, Rachel, who turned 40 this week. Rachel is in the center, wearing purple and a painfully forced smile at the beginning of her surprise party here.



Here is Rachel telling me not to take her picture while she is crying. Whatever, Rachel.

Rachel's husband surprised her big-time, and all we had to do was lie to her a lot to help make it all happen. Thankfully, a couple of us are really good liars, so it all went well. The chiefest of liars would be the one in the middle. Great job, Daph!

Rachel is not digging turning 40, ladies. For those of you who have passed that benchmark, what encouragement could you offer her that will make her believe that this decade will be a good one? I will print your comments off and give them to her Wednesday night, when we Girls celebrate privately. It might even be fun to read some aloud. So be creative, be fun! Above all, don't be a Debbie Downer!

Sunday evening, I copied all of the addresses that you sent me over the weekend so that I can mail the "Crank" bracelets. I thanked Pastor Shane for you all and told him to look at your comments, which he did.

This is just a bonus pic to show you what face my friends bring out in me all the time. That is the face of searing sarcasm and rapier wit. I don't suggest clicking on this picture while you are drinking or eating.

Also on Sunday evening, I watched the long-awaited season premiere of Chuck, a show saved by fan votes last year. I loved this year's promotion: "No More Mr. Nice Spy." Zachary Levi is a believer, by the way. You can read an interview in which he speaks about his faith at Relevant Magazine.

So that was my weekend. Now, in honor of my coffee fiasco, I'm going to ask you to "spill it!" (Oh, my cleverness knows no bounds) and tell me about your weekend!