I blogged last week about my birthday and also asked you all to share your favorite food or drinks from your hometown or state. Thanks to everyone who chimed in; such fun discussions.
This post is about part two of my birthday celebration.
The day started with me getting up early to embark on a road trip. As always, driving around the Outer Banks is a veritable feast for the eyes.
The weather was absolutely pristine.
I tooled along for a while and then at about 8 a.m., decided to stop and take some pictures at a country church, which I am often wont to do.
All was well for about 30 seconds.
But then I pulled off the hard dirt track onto a grassy area and this happened.
Couldn’t go forward. Couldn’t go back. I was stuck!
I called our insurance company and then waited on a wrecker to deliver me from my predicament. (Fun question: does anyone know the difference between a tow truck and a wrecker?)
The fella had to try a few things to get me out but eventually, I was back on my way.
Of course, it was no kind of hardship to wait in such a lovely spot. Even though it was a bit chilly (27 degrees) I happily wandered about and captured photos of the kind of serenity that only a country church can engender.
And then it was back on the road for a 4-hour trip to pick up a particular item we had purchased. From there I headed back east and stopped in Smithfield, NC where I had dinner with some dear friends, Danny and Carolyn Stephenson.
The Stephensons were already close friends before Sarah was diagnosed in 2002 but during her diagnosis and treatment, they were also our pastors. In fact, on the very day we got the news about Sarah’s (probably terminal) cancer, Carolyn was in the room with us.
This was the morning we were leaving for Duke to prepare for Sarah’s bone marrow transplant, none of us having any guarantee Sarah would make it through. There were plenty of worries behind those brave smiles.
There were many Junie B. Jones books read on the transplant floor.
Here we are on the actual day of the transplant. (Sarah is holding her own stem cells.)
During a horrific season of life, Danny and Carolyn walked with us every step and loved us well.
And now here is that young girl with cancer all grown up . . . and in love.
After Danny, Carolyn, and I ate, we decided we needed to get a picture of Carolyn and me together. Carolyn was making a big deal of showing Danny exactly which button to push–even though I suspect he already knew.
As friends of almost forty years, Carolyn and I can go without talking for six months and then pick up the phone and be right back where we were.
Friendship is such a blessing.
showing some unexpected guests we had this week.
Do you recognize one of them?
Yep. It’s Meagan. (And her sister, Kristin.)
Meagan and Steve are having a contest to see who can fit the most popcorn in their mouth at one time.
Kristin had to get in on the popcorn fun, too.
Unfortunately, I can’t share with you today the reason they were in town. But I promise to tell you soon. (You are welcome to take your best guess, though.) 🙂
What about you?
Do you have a friendship that spans many decades? Tell us about it? What makes the friendship special?
Beautiful pictures! It’s so pretty there! I have one friend I met just before we started kindergarten. We are 59 now. .She lived 4 doors down from me.We were inseparable as kids. Did everything together, swimming , biking, roller skating, etc.Spent many nights at each other’s homes. We were in each other’s weddings. She married a Navy man and moved out of the area. We see each other whenever we can, and keep,in touch through phone calls. We always pick up right where we left off and it feels like no time has gone by. We have another friend we met at age 9 or so. I still see her and we have traditions we try to keep going every year. She is local so it’s easier to see her. You are right, good friends are a blessing.
Michele,
I love hearing about friendships that have lasted for so many decades. Those friendships are absolute treasures. And how nice that one of our friends has stayed local; a double blessing.
My college room mate and I have been friends for over 25 years now, we just had lunch yesterday! We went through a lot together in college and beyond.
I am terrible at guessing games but I’ll go with possible engagement for sweet Sarah. I absolutely adore that picture of her and Gage together. I know I’ve said this before, but seeing her thriving post cancer just makes my heart so, so happy.
Love to all the Smiths!
Heather
Heather,
Love all the interesting guesses I’ve been reading. The answer will be coming very soon!
I love that your friendship from college has lasted 25 years. I can see it lasting another 25 years–and beyond. Enjoy that wonderful gift!
What a lovely drive you had (except for being stuck). I always love to see your photos. I’m guessing on the tow truck/wrecker difference. I’m going to say it’s just a matter of where you live? Down south they are called Wrecker and up north, it’s tow truck?
Can’t wait to hear what the girls are doing in town!
Krista,
Thanks for the comment on my photos; I love getting to take them and love getting to share them.
Interesting about the names being dependent on where you live. I’d never thought of that before.
I have grown apart from most of the friends I had from elementary school to high school. Many of them stayed in our hometown while I have moved several times – and states. I do have a friend I met almost 20 years ago when we both worked for the same company in Florida. I lived on the west coast in Tampa and she lived in the east coast in the Daytona area. She and her husband have been to visit me twice in Kansas since 2016. I visited them two years ago January and would have liked to have gone back this year but the pandemic as well as my mom’s fall prevented that. We text nearly every day and talk on the phone every 3-4 weeks, usually for an hour or more.
I’m thinking the “item” you ordered was Meagan and Kristin and they were there to speak at a women’s meeting you had at church.
The church reminds me where my dad’s parents are buried. That church isn’t quite as big as the one in your picture but has the cemetery beside it.
Phyllis,
I LOVED your guess about Meagan and Kristin. The most creative one yet! 🙂
Even though you haven’t stayed in touch with childhood friends, it’s wonderful to have a friend you’ve known for 20 years. Good for you, for keeping in touch so well. May that friendship continue for many years to come.
I’m sorry you got stuck, but what exquisite pictures of the country church! I think the candid photo of Sarah & Gage is my favorite of them yet! It just radiates contentment. And how fun to get a visit from Meagan and her sister. I can’t wait to learn the reason for their visit. I hope you have a wonderful week!!
Sue Ellen,
I love that photo of Sarah and Gage, too. Contentment is a good way to describe it.
Wait you left out some very important information about this Meagan visit: Who won the popcorn contest?? 😁
Ellen,
NO ONE can beat Steve in a popcorn eating contest. He has it down to an art form. 🙂
Funny, I just asked my husband and son in the car a few days ago what the difference between a tow truck and and a wrecker is. I was informed that a tow truck tows away disabled vehicles and a wrecker hauls away (on a flatbed) totally wrecked vehicles. Sort of the difference between an ambulance and a hearse? This is how the boys explained it. 😅
Ellen,
That IS funny we both had the same question come to mind recently. 🙂
I liked “the boys” clear-cut explanation. Very informative.
Well, I Googled tow truck definition and wrecker definition. A tow truck can pick up or haul a vehicle. A wrecker recovers vehicles. That’s all I got. Fortunately the nice man was able to recover YOUR vehicle. What a gooey, sink-y kind of mess to be in.
My first thought for the unexpected visit was perhaps something to do with Sarah and Gage as well. I can’t wait to find out!!
We have dear friends that we have known for 38 years. We met them when we we moved into our house…they were our next door neighbors. It just so happens that their wedding anniversary is on May 9th like ours so we have celebrated with them every year for all of those 38 years. We always go out to dinner and try not to repeat restaurants. Sometimes we have to go quite a distance but it is so much fun! They are the best kind of friends and are about 15 years older than we are so we turned to them on many occasions as a young married couple for advice or help. Our kids are like their kids because they have watched them grow up from day one. They have always been there for us and us for them. It is really a great friendship! We are so blessed to have them in our lives!
Lee Anne,
How amazing to celebrate your anniversary with the same couple 38 years in a row. What a treasure they have been, especially being older and being willing to share their advice and wisdom. LOVED that story so much! I think of all the ways your conversations have changed over the years from when you were newlyweds, and all the good and bad times you’ve gone through together. Such a wonderful gift.
Happy Belated Birthday! Could be planning an upcoming engagement! Or Kristin and family moving to NC?
I’ve been blessed with several lifetime friends, two I met 61 years ago. One I speak with almost daily She’s been married for decades to the same man and I’ve been the single Mom. She provided a daily adult contact and occasionally a voice of reason. We don’t agree on everything though there was a time we agreed about most. It gets interesting at times, but the bottom line is we are there for each other regardless of differences.
Guerrina,
Good guesses. Can’t tell, though. 🙂
Sixty-one years? That is an incredibly long time to be friends with the same people, especially to speak with one of them almost daily.
I love the fact that your friendship has persevered even throughout disagreements and differences of opinion. THAT is the definition of a true friendship.
OOOHHH, Is Meagan and her sister helping a certain gentleman plan the perfect way to pop the question to a certain beautiful young lady??
Yes, I have a friend just like your relationship with Carolyn. We can go a year or more and not talk, due to both of us living and enjoying our lives, and then get together and sit in a restaurant for 6 hours. True story: the last time we met for dinner, we sat in the restaurant for more than 6 hours and then spent another hour in the parking lot, once we were basically thrown out because they were closing. Even though they were not busy and no one was waiting for a table, I ended up tipping more than my bill was because we took up a table for so long. Those kinds of friendships are great to have!!
BTW, sorry, I forgot to wish you a Happy Birthday! I got too excited trying to guess what Meagan and her sister were up to, besides stuffing popcorn in their mouths!!!
Donna,
Thanks for the birthday wishes. I agree that popcorn-stuffing IS pretty distracting. 🙂
Donna,
Six hours? I’m sure those restaurant folks thought you’d NEVER leave. But what a great memory you made with that sweet friend. Hopefully, you can meet a little more frequently and cut down your restaurant time to a mere three or four hours! 🙂
I’m so glad you had a wonderful birthday! Brooke’s 14th was nice, too.
I have had good friends in every stage of my life. God has blessed with ladies that were there for me through all of these stages. Since we started moving so frequently over the last 8 years, it amazes me to realize I’ve had very good friends from each place in the short periods of time that we lived there. You are one of them!
My bestie is a beautiful godly woman in Pensacola. We are supportive of each other and I feel like we compliment each other. She is a bit more reserved than I am so I break her out of her shell at times and she helps me stay grounded when needed. It’s a lovely friendship!
Tammy,
Yes, I feel blessed to have had your family in town for that brief time and that we got to know each other. It was fun singing together!
I love that you and your bestie have forged such a great friendship, not needing to be exactly the same but allowing your differences in personality to be such a strength to your relationship.