You are all wondering if I caught another mouse….right? So far it is “no.” If I don’t catch another one by tomorrow I may put the dishes back and put the kitchen in order. I’ll have to raise my confidence level if I do. I don’t really want to go through all those dishes again. They aren’t as bad as all the measuring cups, the table-ware, measuring spoons and all the items that a baker uses.

Since I have no news about mice I am shifting my thoughts to the rest of the day. Friday always means a visit to see my friend in an assisted living complex in Cabool. I have deep roots in Cabool and it will always be a place where part of me resides. Many good memories there for many reasons.

I began having my friend come one day a week for dinner after both our husbands died. For some time she was able to drive over, then health issues took away her driving privilege. She was devastated but I found a way around it by picking her up and taking her home. Then she had a close call and eventually ended up at the assisted living place in Cabool.

I continue to drive up every Friday to keep the continuity of our friendship alive. Keeping in touch with friends is important. One never knows when it will be the last visit for you or for them. A case in point is a man who we were fond of. Rocky hired him to drive patients to their medical appointments and he was just a top notch guy.

I saw him shortly before Christmas in a store and he came up behind me and asked if I had his Christmas present yet. I knew it was John. I turned around to his laughing eyes and said, “I sure do. I got you a bottle of whiskey!” He didn’t expect an answer like that, it too him off guard. I continued with, “Yah, I knew you’d never drink it so it would be the gift that keeps on giving.” We both had a good laugh, wished each other a Merry Christmas and went our separate ways.

John died suddenly January 24th and was buried before I even knew it. He was a good Christian man and a good friend. Now he and Rocky are both gone and the patients they drove are being transported by someone else.

Life is short whether we live to be 100 or 16. Days fly by and good intentions are often forgotten in the haste of time. If we have friends who are special we need to keep in touch, whether by phone, slow mail or email……it may be the last connection we have with them.

Essentially Esther