Celebration Of Life

Last night, we arrived at Tom and Mary's at around 8:30. Fortunately, they were home and still awake; we hadn't had cell service since shortly after leaving Coeur d'Alene and were unable to give them our ETA. (Who knew there were only two service providers in Montana?? And Virgin Mobile is not one of them...)

I woke up excited this morning. We travel to Montana each year to celebrate the life of our friend Collin, who passed away four years ago. Over the years, the sadness of the occasion has faded a little (although it will never go away completely) and happiness and joy are starting to take over. We get to join Collin's parents, Tom and Mary, in celebrating his memory and see old and new friends, who we met through him. I've always thought that an annual celebration of life was a great way to keep someone's memory alive and I think his parents are extremely brave for putting one together every year. They appeared happy as well, but I can't imagine how difficult it must be for them at times, to see their son's friends and family gathered, but to not have him there. 

Like every year, Mary worked tirelessly to prepare a few main dishes for the potluck guests, and I did what I could to help (Zoey took up a lot of my time this year). The weather was nice and Mary's garden served as the perfect space for everyone to catch up and share stories. The dinner was definitely a success; everyone's spirits were high and we all knew that that's the way Collin would have wanted it.

Playing in the living room, after everyone went home.

She slept through most of the celebration and then was wide awake for a little while after.

She was sitting up as if she'd been doing it for weeks, and not just two days! :)