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Thursday, January 03, 2008

The holidaze, reflected

The winter holidays brought wonderful warmth and much needed time spent with loved ones. It was a nonstop ride... filled with overdue visits, reconnecting with old friends, meeting new faces, and embracing forgiveness... while being constantly reminded of how old I am. Needless to say, when I got in my truck and headed south in December, I didn't know I was strapping myself in for such a ride, but I could not have asked for anything better.

As I entered the town I hold so dear, I was overwhelmed by joy and hesitation. However, as the visit progressed, the hesitation slowly evaporated and I was filled more and more happiness. I was surprised at how easily things came together and was quite sad to have to have to head back north on I-95. Getting on the interstate just seemed wrong.

Aside from the higher temps, even allowing an afternoon at the beach sunbathing, it was being around people who so openly embraced me that was really touching. Sure, the fact that it had been a year since I had been down probably has a lot to do with it, but even so, I soaked up the love, laughter, and conversation like a sponge dried out to the point of brittleness.

In addition to the town, growth and change had occurred within the lives of those I reconnected with... to the point that they were hardly recognizable to me. What was heart warming more than anything was that the relationship we had was still present, even though many years have past and our lives have taken us many different places.

The trip touched me in more ways than I can express and I look forward to next visit... it cannot come soon enough!

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