It just keeps getting better. Each year when these life long
friends reunite it seems we have even more fun. Maybe it is because we are all
together only once a year and shut out all of life’s stresses. Whatever the
reason, it is one fun weekend. We returned to the beautiful Northern California
wine country for the second year renting a spacious house in a spectacular
setting among the vine-covered hills to celebrate our 60th year of
life.
Everything was perfect: the weather, the setting, the food,
the wine, and the companionship. Well, almost everything.
Our plan was to meet at the property at noon on Thursday
when our rental period began. There were three vehicles coming from different
locations. We had written directions from the owner, GPS in our vehicles and on
our smart phones, supplemented by maps we had printed off the Internet. How
then, you may wonder, did we all get lost? After much frustration and an hour
or so wondering around the hills of Healdsburg with very limited cell service,
we came to the realization that the street name and the address of the house
did not match up. What? Why were we not given this information? Eventually we
all found the house and the confusing drive to get there made our arrival all
the sweeter once we entered our world of luxury, serenity, and friendship.
With all the supplies we needed for great eating and
drinking, we settled in to play in the pool, soak in the hot tub, take walks in
the vineyards, and enjoy each other. In celebration of our milestone birthdays
we expanded our weekend to three nights this year and planned to get gussied up
and go out one night.
For the days we stay in we divide ourselves into two
competing teams (team A and team B) for preparing meals. That way there are not
too many cooks in the kitchen at any one time and you have a day when you are
free of chores. Last year my team (team B) unanimously won for best dinner.
This year we had to give the honors to team A, who pulled out all the stops due
to the fact we had guests for dinner, a relative and his wife who live in the
area, joined us on our last night. The more the merrier and it was very merry.
Laughter is the best medicine, and we laugh a lot over the
weekend, especially at night when the wine is flowing freely. As we packed up to
head back to the real world, we carried with us memories of our time together and
find ourselves smiling at our exploits for weeks to come. We have already
chosen our house for next year knowing that it just keeps getting better.
