People

     Three of my favorite people are no longer in my life. Death and distance separates me from them. Their memory lingers in my mind long after the sun goes down.
Each of them gave me the gift of love that I now carry closest to my heart. 
Today, while Adele sang on my Pandora Radio station, I remembered. 
Their smiles and their laughter. Their way around the kitchen.  The way I felt in their arms.  So loved.  I am blessed for knowing them.  They are missed.
     Yesterday, I was blessed to have six other favorites around my table. One is new.
The others' represent my youth and the treat that comes with having people in your
life for over 40 years. The laughter is always present.  We all know our way around a
kitchen.  My childhood friends have maintained our friendships. They hold all our secrets and our sorrows. We have days that we remember and days we'd like to forget.
We didn't know then, we we all gathered, that we would still be connected after all these years.  We know now that we will still be connected when our time here ends.
We are each other's memories and each other's friends.
     My new person is an answer to a prayer. She is a blessing in my life and the life of 
those she loves.  I can't wait to have 40 years with her.
     There are people in all our lives who have touched our hearts in ways that linger
on throughout time.  My goal this year is to be one of those people. To love my
people so well that I linger on their hearts.
     Be well my friends.