Picking up shells

It has been awhile since I posted and I need to catch up.  Remember in my very first blog I talked about Southern Sisters?  Again, since I have no blood sisters mine are all "sisters of the heart."  Which brings me to my update.  I have had the pleasure of spending the past 6 days with my dear friend and sister who lives in Tampa.  Let me tell you first about our friendship.  She was my neighbor when we purchased our first house 34 years ago.  Our houses faced different streets and our backyards were connected.  They always say back door guests are the best.  She and her husband became wonderful friends to my husband and myself.  Her children were young and I watched them grow up.  When our son was born they graciously accepted the role of godparents to him.  Over the years we have been separated by miles as they have moved from place to place but when we see one another it is if we just walked across those backyards we shared so many years ago.  The time and distance don't seem to matter.

So, I pretty much invited myself for a visit and we are back to my story.  I drove the 7 hours to her house on Monday and our adventures began.  We caught up on family, we talked about our dogs, we went to our favorite restaurants and just enjoyed each others company.  We have shopped at the mall and drove to small Florida towns and hit the local antique stores and shops.  We took a ferry to Calidesi Island and spent the day walking the beach and looking for shells and other treasures while we talked and laughed.

We have laughed till our sides hurt and we were in tears.  There is nothing that compares to laughing like that.  It is like a cleansing balm!


The best thing about all the above is that we did it all together.  We could have spent the week sitting on her porch with a glass of tea and it would have been just as wonderful.  Even though we email and talk through the year it is not the same as spending time together.
I hope you are blessed to have a friend like this.  Someone who knows your thoughts before you speak them.  Who knows what you love and what you hate!  A friend who stands by you when something is wrong and who shares your most secret secrets!  They are like those shells we found on the beach - each one is unique and a treasure. 


Spring is a time of renewal in the cycle of life. That is how I feel - like I have been refreshed and renewed just by spending time with my friend and sister.  For now we both will think on the past days we were able to share and enjoy and look forward to our next visit.  Whenever and wherever it is, we will cross those old backyards once again and "sit a spell" and catch up with one another.