Thank you!

Here is Jonathan with his cute John Deere outfit from Joy and his homemade blanket from Lora! Thank you both. We just took this picture today after his bath.

And another special gift came for Jonathan yesterday. . . Thank you Holly and Rick! It says "J.E.T. SET" and shows a rocket blasting into the sunny sky. Little boy was solemnly contemplating his future travels when we took this picture.

I want to be back in Paris

Our second day in Paris started when Vincent met us at our hotel. We walked to the base of the Eiffel Tower. It was already extremely crowded, so we wandered through the Parc du Champs de Mars, eventually past Les Invalides and the Ecole Militaire. We ended up near Notre-Dame Cathedral. We had a leisurely lunch together and enjoyed the lovely day. Then outside Notre-Dame I took a picture of Great Grandpa's statue. :) We mused for awhile at the sculptures above the main entrance that show Jesus and the devil weighing the worth of souls (the devil attempts to cheat). Inside Vincent translated the story about an interesting, if grim, statue. It was of "death," depicted as a skeleton in a hooded cloak, holding an hour glass. He gestures to a grieving widow that her time to join her husband (in his casket) is almost near. (Cheery).

Eventually, Vincent needed to leave for his train. I said goodbye to Vincent and began looking around the Rodin Museum. J.D. and Vincent had a quick beer together, and then J.D. joined me inside the Museum. The pictures here are "The Kiss," "Cathedral" (the joined hands), two of mother and child, "Eve," "The Gates of Hell" (near which I have abandoned all hope), and "The Thinker," which was originally going to be called "The Poet" because it was Dante pondering his Divine Comedy over "The Gates of Hell." J.D. and I enjoyed wandering around Rodin's beautiful garden after the Museum closed. It had been a busy day full of walking, but we were both very happy as we made our way home for the evening.

My few true friends

"Be slow in choosing a friend, slower in changing." -Franklin

I thank you...
for your kind souls.
for your honest generosity and well wishes.
for often protecting my heart in the chaos of life.
for looking past my many flaws and finding what's best to love in me.
for your eagerness to help.
for your utter unwillingness to ever hurt.
for your genuine happiness in my share of life's good fortune.
for your shoulder to lean on when I am weary.
for the safe place any of my tears could fall.
for your wit, your laughter, your sparkling intelligence.
for trusting me.
for accepting with grace my simple gifts and tokens.
for teaching me what you've learned.
for your loyalty and love.
for valuing my friendship too.
for giving me more reasons to live.

Thank you for sharing your lives with me,
for I am far the better because of you.