Relatively Speaking

Reader Dear, I find it relatively interesting how the HM and I began our trip south, and similarly ended it, by visiting relatives.

In the whole wide world, I've only got two brothers.  Of all the places in the wide world where they could be living, they both happen to live in the same state of the United ones.  In fact, they both live near the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.   In fact, how fortunate are the HM and I to get to visit such a beautiful area!

But, after we've driven through another day of rain (still heading north), HM and I arrive at the beautiful mountains of Virginia, and before we go in the direction of either brother, our first stop is to see friends--ones who "stick close as brother and/or sister"  Our close and enduring friendship with these two has led us from state to state and house to house.  Now, however, I feel we've all hit the jackpot--the friends get themselves the house (best of all their houses [I believe][ built it themselves, in the middle of a woods];  the prize for HM and I, we get to stay here whenever we visit!)

 And talk about being treated like royalty! (Okay, I know I wasn't talking about any such thing, but I've decided to bring up the topic because it's so apropos.  Just look:

HM and I get to (S and P)'s house just in time for supper.  (S) is putting together the meal even as she and (P) are welcoming us into their home.

 After more than a week of restaurant food, HM and I have eyes that are dancing at the sight of real, honest-to-goodness, home-cooked nourishment!  Can you believe it, Viewer Dear, (S) is preparing to bake bread!  (Yes, yes, you are understanding it correctly.  She has mixed up actual dough to put in the [I'm not going to say "actual" again, Reader Dear, because, in fact, most all ovens are "actual" ones] oven. But I will say that she is going to serve us loaves of actual, home-made bread, fresh from the oven)!

Into the oven she also slides chicken, potatoes, vegetables. There's a whole homemade meal, every morsel of which (without a doubt, there's dessert, too*) is delectable!

*Our hostess, I exclaim, again and again, makes this whole hostessing thing (bread-baking, meal prep, meal service, conversing while keeping wits about her)  look like a piece of cake!

 

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Now, we've eaten, and there is a cozy fire burning in the wood stove.  It's when our hostess pulls out the brightly-colored jigsaw puzzle, which hours later (after [as bosom friends are prone to do] we've solved all the problems of the world and some of our personal ones, too,  and/or at least we have discussed an admirable number of  things, laughed  lots,  eaten snacks, examined issues and reflected on golden memories)

looks like this:

To be honest, the puzzle completion did not occur until the following day.  It was following breakfast,* a visit to the center of the city (Harrisonburg is a relatively small city, but a city nonetheless [it has its limits]).  We visited two churches, one in order to attend a service, and one to view the spot where our multi-talented hostess (S) teaches English-as-a-Second Language. We visited an arts-and-crafts shop.  We had a buffet meal of India-style food at a restaurant.  We had a tour of the countryside (outside the limits of the city).

                                                                    

We returned to the home in the woods,
where our good host spent hours stoking a fire and boiling down sap to make maple syrup (freshly-made maple syrup for the breakfast waffles!) and our non-stop hostess prepared an evening meal of not one soup, but two (Borscht [roasted beets] being one of them!)     

Washing Dishes

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*It was an elaborate breakfast,
our dear hostess attempted to pass off as "simple"

By the following day, the puzzle was complete.

The friendship will carry on forever,

but HM and I had to say goodbye for now.

(As well as "Oh, thank you,

Que queridos amigos!)

It was time to head in the direction of 

my younger brother, my dear womb-mate.

(Reader dear, I am relatively near the

end of this tale of traveling south and 

north again)

.To be continued...

relatively soon!

...........