One by one, month after month, we've
all turned eighty--an age, the thought of which when we were seventeen and
graduating from high school, never EVER entered our minds.
Yet here we are sixty-two years
later, meeting for breakfast on the last Saturday of each month. In the several
years we've been "keeping the group together," there have been many different venues. Some took too long to
serve us, some were too crowded, but at the last place, we were seated in a
anteroom at the center table. Eventually, on either side, were two families with small children.
Two
of us have hearing aids. Noisy children and hearing aids DO NOT go together.
One of the six or seven of us said, "Wouldn't it be nice if we could meet
at our homes?" No noise, no hustle and bustle, no accidentally spilling
syrup on a child's head (a waitperson actually did this!)
One of the three Barbaras in our
class took the suggestion and offered her home for June's breakfast. Since she
lived in Vimy, she had to give the drivers among us directions. A
still-beautiful widow, her children living on either side of her, she began
what may become a new tradition for us oldsters-in-age, but still
young-at-heart.
I
'd inadvertently made an appointment with the Habitat Restore truck to pick up
items I'd stored FOR A YEAR, so I didn't attend. But I volunteered for July--a
month chockfull of other activities: a tremendous birthday party, then a
weeklong sisters' trip to mid-Tennessee.
But
I had two weeks to plan. "Don't go to any trouble," someone probably
said, but how does one host ANY event without going to SOME trouble? Trouble
used here means "effort."
Trouble--effort--in this case meant spending thought, time, money, and
planning, cleaning, sprucing the house AND the yard.
Of
course, hostesses will go to some trouble. But it's not a negative; it's an
opportunity to gather dishes, match silverware, select tablecloths, place mats,
napkins and napkin rings (I have literally dozens of the latter three items).
Beverly,
Polly, Glenda, Shirley, Barbara, Shari, Doris and I sat around the family
pedestal table (with 2 leaves) in the quiet. Afterwards, we removed to the
living room and visited until nearly noon.
I'll
have to say, trouble or not, it was 'way more pleasant than being hemmed in by two young
families.
2 comments:
I am super impressed. It is a long time since I have had a gathering of that many people at home. I suspect I would feel overwhelmed.
I am very glad that the reward for your 'virtue' was a lovely afternoon.
I agree entertaining is fun, especially when you have a special bond with your guests. Our group gets together for birthdays which means about quarterly. In fact, we did last week. We still go out, but your idea of moving to homes would make for a kinder atmosphere. We're all celebrating 70 this year. We hope to be still meeting when we turn 80.
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