The beach was really mild this morning.....no windbreaker needed. The ocean was fairly flat and the sun was just beginning to peek over to the rocks offshore. A beautiful morning. I don't know, for the life of me, why I haven't been down here for years because I'm always in love all over again with the wonder that the sea and shore brings. My first trip to Port Orford, visiting some long-time friends, was to Battlerock beach. That day, the wind was blowing enough that my legs felt like they were being sandblasted....which they were! As I wondered why I haven't taken the time to return to such a special place, when I got home I received a phone call from California. My same long-time friend has terminal cancer........all throughout her abdomen. Another one of those oddly timed coincidences.....while I was thinking of her there were strong emotions and feelings swirling around; but this type of thing has always happened. She was the one that listened to me sob my heart out when my grandson, Jorma, died. She just 'happened' to call me.
It's very sad news and I hurt not only for her but for her closely knit and large family, as well. And her husband........he's just broken-hearted. There's so little a person can do, really. Especially when I live a good distance away.
So, I thought what I'd do would be to start sending her different cards with my photos on them.....each one evoking a memory of something we would remember together.....something funny. There are a LOT of them. She and I were neighbors in Grass Valley, playing at being the 'country gal'. She'd call me everytime her calf would jump the fence.....time after time, until this calf was practically a bull and even if I could have caught him at that poine....well, what then?? Or when I brought over a birdhouse with 5 or 6 orphaned baby wrens, after I exhausted myself in trying to keep up with feeding them sowbugs and earwigs...and then they got loose in her house and they were everywhere....in drawers, under the bed and into part of a mattress, along with her dog and cat having the time of their lives in chasing along with us. Then there was the rattlesnake thing....that was a mess.......It's just so hard to not be down there and actually DOING something, although I know that it's just the feeling of powerlessness over some hurt in a loved ones life. Leads you to feeling a little desperate, you know? So, the greeting cards will be the way for me to deal with it I think. Not only am I hoping to bring a little humor into her present situation but it will help me say good-bye to a very dear lady and wonderful friend.
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