For your dining pleasure

After my last day of school I quickly drove home to pack my car with all of my belongings that wouldn't fit into my one suitcase and my one backpack headed for Africa. These items were too precious to give away so they will be stored in the convince of my old bedroom that my mom faithfully keeps as mine and has my old stuffed cat ginger guarding my bed and forever waiting for my return. This job of packing my car was easy since I had been really preparing for this school two months ago when I applied. Backs were back and just needed to be jigsawed into my trunk. The tricky part was a desk that couldn't make it's way down the stairs. Just when Ray and I thought it impossible we would remember that it go up this narrow jagged stairwell and what goes up must come down. I worked quick because some of my most favorite people in the whole wide world were driving up from Shelton to visit me. I wanted to be ready to drive south homebound after our dining at East and West Cafe.

When Sandra, her daughter Sage who is ten and Allena who is living with them for a year and is from the Ukraine came we all wanted to start crying right then and there. Sage gave me a amoeba hug and as I she pulled away said "No, I'm not done yet and would come in for another tender squeeze only to decide that she needed even more. Don't you love kids because they have this amazing ability to make you feel like you are the most important person in the whole world.

We ate a delicious dinner that was sprinkling with deep conversation then a little of funny face squishing, and completely covered with side splitting laughter. I was excited to have my favorite dish Swimming Angel because I had tried to eat it last Wednesday with Bill and Kathy and Le Le but because of the crazy spinach they were serving it. The first time I had this meal that is a yellow sea of peanut sauce surrounding an island of rice and spinach was with my adopted mother Christy Romfo. She took me here when it was just a one roomed house for my twentieth birthday. I've also celebrated a handfuls of other birthdays here as well. Maybe every birthday. . . I'm not sure. Anyways, I loved my time with these people that are so gentle, peaceful, brilliant and compassionate. They are my favorite!

And of course we couldn't say goodbye so we made plans to see each other again next week for our final amoeba hugs and teary smiles because then it will truly be our last, for a while anyways.

After dinner I drove home to Oregon and don't tell anyone especially my parents but I plugged my headphones into my ears and listened to my ipod all the way down. Otherwise I was sure that sleep would have had victory over me. I realize this was a law breaking solution to a detrimental problem and I promise to never do it again.

I got home at 12:30 where my mom greeted me with a half awake hug and smile and then I drifted off into my own slumber fully aware that it was close to the last time in this twin bed beneath my window. Well, last for a while anyways.