Good Company

I successfully finished my house-sitting stint this week. By that I mean nothing broke, the plants survived, and the milk delivery made it safely to the fridge.

The milk was a close thing. I was told that the delivery would come between 9 and 11 am. I would be at work during that time, so I left a cooler full of ice on the porch and planned to go bring the milk inside during my lunch break.

These are some of the plants that kept
me company during the last few weeks.
I probably indulged them with too much
water, but growing up in a semi-arid
climate makes me expect that all plants
need lots and lots of water. I'm just
happy they were all still green at the end
of the three weeks.

But when I arrived at lunch, there was no milk to be seen. I was so sure it would be there, I looked in the cooler four times before I really believed it was empty. When I was finally convinced, I left the cooler on the porch and went back to work.

After work, I checked again. Still no milk.

So, I left to run an errand. Then I went back to check again.

Nothing.

At that point, I gave up. I emptied the ice and put the cooler away. Then I sat down to play the piano for a few minutes before leaving for the night. Halfway through the first song, there was a knock at the door. Lo and behold, it was the milkman.

It made me think about how well life works out sometimes. The milk arrived about eight hours after I expected,  a half-hour after I’d given up on it, and at a time when I could easily have been somewhere else. But it arrived right when I was there to take it and put it straight in the fridge. It was a simple thing, but it made me wonder how often I give up on bigger things just because they don’t arrive when I expect them to.

It also gave me a chuckle at my own expense. I drink about one half-gallon of milk per week, so when the milkman held the crate out, I started grabbing one half-gallon jar. I hadn’t even considered that a family of four might want more than that. The milkman kindly asked if I just wanted to take the crate. I laughed at myself as I carried the whole crate back to the kitchen and transferred all four jars to the fridge.

My living alone mentality sometimes forgets about other family dynamics besides the greater grocery volume required. Generally I don’t mind living alone – I’m usually content in my own company. But it’s nice to be in a crowd once in a while.

This weekend I received that exact treat. I went to visit a friend and her family who have just moved to Charlottesville so her husband can attend law school. It was wonderful to chat and catch up for an hour. And it was so much fun to have her two little kids (ages 5-ish and 3-ish) coming over to tell me things, to be tickled, to climb on me, to show me treasures, and to give me hugs. They had never even seen me before. There is something inescapably precious about the presence of kids.

After that visit, I continued north to stay with my aunt and uncle and attend an Open House for my cousin and his new wife. The house was full of good people intent on having a good evening. I knew only four of the people there (my relatives), but I had a good time talking and hearing thoughts and stories from various guests. Good people are good friends even when they’re strangers.

My visit culminated with a good night’s sleep, a scrumptious breakfast (much better than I ever make), a nice time at church, and some excellent family visiting time. I left with a bag of good food for the drive home and a thankful heart for having those wonderful people in my life.

A little company is a wonderful thing.

This was option #1 at the Open House.

This was option #2 at the Open House.
I don't know what's in it, but it was yummy.

I saw this license plate on the way home today.
I figure this is an adequate description of my life, as I am constantly busy being a Quilter.

This is my newest toy.
(Thanks to Mom & Dad for the birthday present!)
It looks huge on my wrist because it is huge on my wrist. But it's the smallest
one I could find with the features that I wanted (and it's comfortable enough).
The buttons have a little bit of a learning curve; it was stuck on Hong Kong time for
a little while until I figured out how to set the clock.
Charlottesville 1/2 Marathon, here I come!