Yes, I have sadly returned from my visit with La Belette Rouge. I say sadly because the trip was so much more than I could have imagined and awakened me to some amazing things. It also reinforced my strong feeling about being truly open and authentic, and all that can happen when we are.
Meeting LBR was so unreal. I got off the plane in Austin and walked all the way down the concourse and down the escalators and there she was... the real and very beautiful LBR. We hugged and looked at each other like this was absolutely surreal, which it absolutely seemed and still does at times now. We had to hug and stare at each other numerous times before we could move on to baggage claim. Despite the headache of canceled American Airlines flights and delays which consumed a 17 hour day for me, I was so ready to celebrate with a proper cocktail. Meeting LBR and the excitement of such quickly gave me a second wind, so away we went to a little bar in downtown Austin. It was great being outside in 75 degree weather that late/early, enjoying a jack and coke with someone I've come to regard as a sister soul mate. Amazing. Even the hurricane-like gusts of wind seemed to be a lovely welcome.
The synchronicities between LBR and I continued to unfold throughout the trip and the weasel love extended so easily to the he-weasel and Monsieur Inkey (a whole post will be dedicated to this ridiculously handsome cat, seriously). He-weasel greeted LBR and I for drinks with a bunch of sunflowers for each of us. His warmth and sincerity were immediately felt. We animatedly discussed Beavers Football and the possibilities of going to both Beavers and Longhorns football games this fall. It was football bliss. And all this as we were watching an amazing sun set over Lake Travis.
I was continually aware that I was meeting these lovely weasels for the first time ever and yet, I doubt I have ever felt more comfortable. The amount of laughter, depth, insight, and authenticity I felt in these five days was tremendous. I am still amazed that this meeting and all that has come out of it and continues to emerge from it, came from blogging and specifically, from what began as a shared passion for Paris.
In repeatedly referring to Paris as a gateway of some kind for me, I have come to realize that my friendship with LBR and its abundance of gifts is part of what lies beyond that gateway. Paris is only some 70 days away and although I am not physically there yet, that symbol of Paris as a gateway has already proven immensely profound through this friendship with LBR. I knew that Paris would be more than a physical vacation destination. I knew that I could not yet identify or predict what would lie beyond that gateway. And the surprise of what has already been revealed just astounds me.
I have used this quote on my profile on and off here on this blog and I return to it more powerfully now than ever:
"Throw your dreams into space like a kite,
and you do not know what it will bring back -
a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country."
-Anaïs Nin
and you do not know what it will bring back -
a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country."
-Anaïs Nin
14 comments:
Aaaaaaaah! Weasel-love right back to you. It was such an amazing experience to meet you in person--I never imagined that in 5 days we could have that much fun, laughter and extraordinary depth. Even beyond your visit, or even Paris, I am so tremendously grateful to have you as a friend.
And, as our buddy Joe said, "if you are following your bliss....you begin to meet people who are in the field of your bliss, and they open the doors to you. I say, follow your bliss and don't be afraid, and doors will open where you didn't know they were going to be."
Through following our bliss by blogging about our love of Paris we we met---and oh my how the doors have flown open. Paris is just another doorway.
Reading the Nin quote makes me a little ferklemped and teary eyed. Love you much. Thanks for throwing your kite up in the wind and for inspiring me to do the same.
Your dork-sided queso loving soul sister friend,
LBR
p.s. M. Inkey sends his love and looks forward to the post dedicated to his unbelievable beauty.
Dear B:
I was a so nice to have you here for a week. The time went way too fast and I look forward to your return; we still have to go to the Ala-mo and put some A'la mode on it( or, maybe, some queso) with a dumb one eared blue-toothed bear chaser. "I'm a stupid bear" says the stupid bear to the Taco meat Bivo right before his untimely death.
Come back soon and go Beavers!!!
Big hug,
He-weasel
LBR... I can't tell you enough how grateful I truly am for your many gifts of friendship and more than anything, for all that you share of yourself. You are such an extraordinary person. I think our buddy Joe should also be an honorary weasel, as you have made me! It is so true that those doors open and those helping hands emerge. I feel that now more strongly than ever. Thank you!
He-weasel... Thank you again for your incredible kindness during my visit. I so enjoyed sharing queso and laughs with you, along with great football talk! You are so wonderful and I'm so happy we were able to meet. Please watch out for those stoooopid one eared bears and we'll be counting down football season together. Beavers and Longhorns (aka Taco Meat Bevos!)!! Thanks so much for coming by my blog and yes, I'll be looking forward to returning. Miss all y'all already! Sniff, sniff.
Great to hear you are back and had a wonderful time.
I can imagine that meeting a virtual friend in person would be surreal. My question would be how much does expectation match reality?
Glad to see you had a gret trip. I love the photograph! Its wonderful!
T
Bonjour, 'b'! Louis was happy to see that you have visited "The Frog Blog"! Check out his new "San Francisco Bay Daily Photo" at http://bayphoto.blogspot.com
Also, please send me an e-mail, then remove this comment. (The e-mail address you have for me is no longer valid, and I didn't port yours over.)
À bientôt,
L la V
Sounds like such a magical trip! So glad you and LBR got to meet in person. And that your paths crossed like they did. It's such a precious gift when special friends wander into our lives. It makes all the difference in the world.
By the way, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle is one of my favorite books ever. I hope you are enjoying it
Richard... I did have a great time, thanks. It is rather surreal to meet a virtual friend. Honestly, LBR and I have spent countless hours on the phone and over email communicating, so I had a strong sense of who she is and really didn't have any expectation other than what I knew of her as a person. But the experience exceeded anything I could have expected.
T... Thank you. It was a great trip!
Louis... Bonjour! Yes, it was great to stop by and visit your blog again. Always such great history and food! I will be sure to return to your photo blog as well. Cheers.
La Page Française... Magical is a great way to describe this trip. It truly was extraordinary. Special friends do make all the difference in the world and having met through our blogs makes it even more incredible to me.
I hope that when in Paris in July, you and I can meet as well. That would be so wonderful! And I'm glad to hear that you like The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle so much. I am really enjoying it so far!
B: Just came to visit again--cause I miss you much. And, I just saw the picture of La Belette Rouge with her single-serving size of Jack. Wow! That is a weasel who can drink.
xo
LBR
So happy you found your soul sister! Sounds like great fun, especially the Jack Daniel's part. haha. How come i wasn't invited to the party??
I love the quote by Anais Nin. I'm writing it down for inspiration. You always find the best quotes. :-)
LBR... I miss you so much too. Yes, that is a weasel who can drink! And she's one classy lady as well. The paradox we both cherish! :)
Zen Chef... I am really fortunate to have met my soul sister. It was a great time and believe me, there was plenty of Jack for all and we would have loved to have shared with you!
Isn't the Anaïs Nin quote great? It keeps appearing and reappearing in my life. Great quotes are such inspiration for me, as are the amazing recipes, photos and stories you post on your blog! :)
that's a great story of a terrific friendship - good for both of you for branching outside of the blogging world and taking the next step to meet and spend time fostering a real-life connection. so many people talk about their intentions, their plans, their ideas, but not nearly as many follow through and go the extra mile. i'm very impressed and happy you two had such a great time.
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