A Taste of Joy

On this past Thursday, my husband and I left for a small trip--an overnight to Allentown PA where my daughter and her boyfriend live.  We stayed in a nearby Comfort Suites hotel and got a chance to meet W (A's boyfriend)'s family for the first time.  It's less than a two hour drive from our home however, to me it was as exciting as going overseas.  You have to understand that other than to go to MD appointments or to the grocery store or once in a while, to church, I've not stepped foot outside my house since the Writer's Conference last summer....and that also was an exception to a longstanding "rule."

On Friday evening my daughter and W came over to the hotel and we went out to White Castle (my husband's favorite haute cuisine) for dinner and then to a nearby mall.  My beloved iPod had malfunctioned two days prior to the trip so I was excited to see an Apple store at the mall and was able to get it exchanged for a brand spankin' new one.  I also lucked out at a Teavana store and got a tea thermos for half price and some yummy new tea.

After a restless, painful night (hotel beds and I do not get along...I missed my hospital bed and recliner terribly), we had breakfast at a diner and then went to my Holy Grail: a trip to a Dick Blick art supply store.  I'd always used their catalog order service for my art supplies but had never encountered an actual store of theirs.  It was wonderful and I could have VERY easily spent a small fortune.  As it was I overshot my cash and was bailed out by my daughter to the tune of $6.  My art supplies have dwindled terribly...having either been tossed due to drying out (as in paint) or given to my daughter with the belief that never again would I be able to use the stuff.  Most of it, it's true, I will not use.  But some brushes and the like I'd regretted getting rid of so.my daughter took mercy and gave me a few of my brushes back.  The Enbrel is beginning to give me  a little of my dexterity back and a bit more strength in my hands.  I can now almost make a fist and before that was impossible.

I will spare you the details of the rest of the trip ---except to say that I greatly enjoyed our visit with W's mom and dad.  My husband and W's dad really hit it off, having not only their professional area in common but both are musicians as well.   B entertained us on both the piano and on the drums...and even my husband, normally very reticent, took a turn playing the drums.

I especially loved the rose gardens in Allentown which were not yet in bloom, however there were flowering trees and the sky was crystal blue and perfect for taking pictures.   I took a LOT of photos. I love to photograph and was looking for inspiration from which to paint or draw.  There was plenty to shoot and for me that was some of the most fun of the trip...and the best part is that I get to keep those pictures and enjoy the trip over and over.  I'm eager to begin to do some artwork based on them...I printed some of them out today to use as resources.

There is no great "meaning" to this post other than that of gratitude. I am grateful for my family.  Grateful for a beautiful day in a beautiful town.  Grateful for the wonder of God's creation.  And especially for adequate health to be able to even consider such a trip.  I had some scary moments because of respiratory issues....but managed to get through them with many puffs of an inhaler.  Pain was an issue but that, at this point in my life, is a given, so it's almost not worth mentioning.

I am praying that in my husband's upcoming vacation weeks we may once more be able to take an overnight somewhere...even back to Allentown and see the roses in bloom.