I am meeting with a dear friend this afternoon to say 'au revoir' (never goodbye), because she is moving across the country to build her dreams with her family.
She has become a friend over the last few years just because we sat together in choir - it was all a joyful, accidental friendship borne from a common love of singing...she doesn't know it but she has been my role model over the years. She has a strong, pure, beautiful voice, sings solo and in ensembles and has a passion for nature and natural living that few of us only dream about.
We have discovered certain other commonalities over the years and have built our friendship more by feeling than chatter...there is little or no talking during choir practice, especially for those of us who need all the practice we can get (that'll be me then!!). So yes, we have nurtured and grown a friendship based on simple things and just a feeling.
There will be a gap in my life when she moves - that unassuming yet strong person sitting next to me at choir, that gentle soul with a passionate love of life and a quiet determination to overcome adversity.
I didn't appreciate, until our last choir rehearsal, what strong and binding friendships could be built up just by sitting next to each other each month - the quiet respect and inner knowing that all is well when we are sharing choir space together.
I know that when she moves, she will take her beautiful presence and inject it with huge enthusiasm into her new environment. She will continue to nurture her beautiful family and be a shining light to all who have the pleasure of meeting her.
So yes, today, I truly appreciate the simple things in life, like singing and how those moments amount to so much more than just singing!
Your presence means more than you will ever know, so thank you Su...and au revoir.