Life in My World – Visiting Hours

Tuesday Ray called and said he was in the area.  Because it was Valentine’s Day, he didn’t have any business dinner appointments and asked if he could drive up and take us to supper.  We had a Valentine dinner of steak and lobster planned and asked him to come and eat with us instead.  Good as dinner was, it was even better sitting on the couch and visiting with Ray after supper.  We watched this video blip of Levin no less than ten times.  Ray spent the night and left early, early the next morning.

Ryan and Haley (and Dan)

Friday night Haley and Ryan (niece/nephew) stopped by to stay with us on their way to Seattle.  They are fun to be with and have interesting things to say and are good listeners as well.  Besides, they laugh easily, too.  We talked about jobs, job searches, hockey, pinterest ideas, politics, books – the whole gamut.  We stayed up late . . . late for me, anyway.  Calvin and I had to leave early the next morning, but he wanted to fix Ryan and Haley a big breakfast of his homemade bacon before we left.  The next morning they got up early to visit with us some more even though they’d gone to bed late, and then did the breakfast dishes.

Ellie, Merlin, Calvin, me

Saturday morning we went to the temple to meet our friends Merlin and Ellie.  We went to a year of college with Merlin, and then after he and Ellie got married they were our neighbors for a very too-short, nine months in Idaho.  It had been years and years since they’d been here to visit, and even longer since we’d been to their home.  However, they have recently moved and that distance has been shortened.  One of the things that I love about Merlin and Ellie is they are genuine and comfortable.  I know it’s a trite phrase, but I always think “salt of the earth” when we’re with them.  Salt is a very valuable thing in a friendship. 

Merlin has a contagious laugh and Ellie is so pleasant.  As we were catching up, Merlin put his arm around Ellie and said, “She’s my hero.  I have a story to tell you.”  He told of a jury on which Ellie had recently served.  It was a grisly murder case.  After the trial and as the jury met to deliberate, Ellie asked her fellow jurors, “Would you mind if we prayed before we begin discussion?”  The jurors gladly obliged and several of the jurors later privately thanked her.  They were all overwhelmed with the responsibility of sifting through the brutal evidence.  

I don’t know which part of the story I liked best, Merlin calling Ellie his hero or Ellie leading her fellow jurors in prayer before making a judgment on the convicted.  (I told you they were the salt of the earth.)

Jesse, Bert's elbow and leg, Rachel, and Hydn

Last night I called my sister Rachel.  We talked and laughed for two hours, seventeen minutes, and twenty-two seconds.  It reminded me of when we used to call back and forth when our kids were little.  Phone calls were 28 cents a minute then and once or twice we spent as much on phone bills as we did on groceries.  Bless Calvin’s soul, he never complained and he certainly could have, but he seemed to sense my sanity needed Rachel's voice and stories.  Last night Rachel told me this story.

One of our basic psychological needs is to feel connected to others, visiting has certainly helped fill that need for me this week and I'm grateful for the opportunities.