Thursday, September 25, 2008

Happy Birthday, Bob Church!





Magical miles of wonderment
sailing clouds by heavenly doors
on a quest to paint true faces
on memories forevermore.
 
Spin life's wheel to match up faces
and so we play roulette games
but it's not a gamble, really.
These spirits whisper their names
 
...without sound, in words on paper.
 
 
This post is a public note of thanks to Bob and Louise Church for their generous invitation to our gang of Word Catalyst columnists to fly to Moberly MO and help old Bubba celebrate his birthday. Words escape me to describe the thrill of meeting cyber acquaintances face-to-face for the first time. Photo faces come to life like cut-out dolls in the hands of a five-year-old, talking, laughing, confirming nuances of their personalities already well expressed by their words written over the years.
 
We were not strangers meeting for the first time, but rather family who just hadn't seen each other yet.
 
Louise cooked up a feast worthy of, well, to be honest, the entire Russian army--ribs, a whole turkey, ham, salads, sandwiches, cookies, pies! Bob's woodsy three acres, complete with a brook and the laughter of grandkids, made for a soothing, happy, love-filled day as we pulled out the stops and savored every minute. We talked, we laughed, in a no holds barred mixing of  minds and spirits to make memories to elicit smiles for years to come.
 
A little music and song filled the fresh air, featuring Harry Furness and his harmonica, plus a grand finish from Bubba himself, doing a raucous comedy that littered the living room with sprawling, roaring, laughter-collapsed bodies rolling in glee. Well, as you can see, a good time...no, make that an forgettable, magical time, was had by all. And we thank you Bob, for letting us into your heart and into your home. God Bless!

Photo download available here, thanks to Techie Dave.


8 comments:

  1. This is lovely, Jo! You summed the weekend up quite well, however, you may want to re-read that last paragraph and do a little editing...damn, there's that English Comp teacher rearing her ugly head! heheheheheheee

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  2. Anonymous12:07 PM

    Jo, I still can't quite put it into words but you have done it for me. It was indeed a magical meeting of minds. Did anyone get Cinderella on video?

    "We were not strangers meeting for the first time, but rather family who just hadn't seen each other yet."

    This sums it up!

    Oh no! Not that English teacher... we're in trouble now! lol

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  3. I could imagine you two getting together, what a howl! Loved the photo, two beautiful I assume are his grandaughters! Sounds like a wonderful time! So that's where ya been! :)

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  4. Whoopsie! Thanks, Karen. See how important it is for you to be back in blogosphere!

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  5. It was grand in every connotation of the word. I am so grateful that I could take part. And it was nice to meet you...

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  6. love the post jo

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  7. Anonymous1:48 PM

    Ah, a perfect description of a perfect weekend. xxooo
    blblbl!
    nan

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  8. Nan, blblblblblblblbl.

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