Stories, part one

Before I keep my storyline going (get it - reminiscing...stories....storyline...it's kind of late), we have had a busy sunny weekend.  Boo had a soccer jamboree Saturday and we had to be there at 8:30AM.  It was lovely weather in the morning and got a little hot for us Washintonians in the afternoon (80 or so.)  Her team played 5 games and were undefeated!  I was so proud of her and her team.  They played one team with a particularly physical player.  She had 20 lbs on Boo and so when they collided, Boo went flying.  She came out of the game and was frustrated and mad and upset.  I told her she couldn't out-manhandle her, but I suspected she could out-dribble her.  Boo got a big smile on her face and went back in the game.  Sure enough, this physical player came up to defend Boo and instead of taking her on, Boo did some fancy footwork and left this player in the dust.  Can you tell I am a proud mama?

We hosted a neighborhood BBQ last night.  We had about 40 people bring their plastic or folding camp chairs and a dessert or a side dish and join us for the evening.  We live in an older neighborhood, which we love.  Julia down the street has lived here for over 50 years.  The Ackermans and Sullivans have lived here over 40 years.  Back when the area was farmland and dairy cows and full of giant fir and cedar trees.

As the hostess, I am usually busy running around making sure there is a knife in the mayonnaise jar or a serving utensil for the German chocolate cake.  Last night as I was taking care of things, I noticed all of our senior neighbors gathered together, hugging and smiling and reminiscing.  I wanted to drop what I was doing and plop myself in the middle of their conversation and absorb their history, their stories.  There is the retired junior high counselor, the retired high school band teacher, the man from somewhere in Eastern Europe.  There is so much I don't know about our neighborhood.  About them.  About life.

By the time I got to the point where everything was mostly taken care of as far as the BBQ goes, it was getting late and they were all saying their goodbyes.  I'm a hugger and made sure I got many as our neighbors left.

Next year I will remember the average age of our guests and start dinner a little earlier than 5:30 so I can enjoy more of their stories.