2, 2, 2 exes in one day!

Who would have thought that attending a lecture on a photography exhibit would lead to thoughts of a man I've been divorced from since 1980???
I certainly would not have...
but I do believe there are no coincidences...
so I must have been in the right place at the right time.

And just where was I?
At the Jepson, of course, partaking of my free party at "The Open Road" Opening Lecture and Reception.
(Membership has its rewards!)
This event called to me, especially with my penchant for both travel and photography...
and curiosity, too!
Just what kind of foods would be present this time?
Chips and burgers?
Sodas and trail mix?

I was assured I was in the
right place from almost the very moment I stepped through the doors into the exhibit.
This quote from Walt Whitman's poem captures so well my mindset and feeling of freedom when behind the wheel of my automobile,
especially when I'm cruising on less-traveled roads with expanses where I drive the only car on the road -
ah, such bliss!
I truly am in love with my car!

So, there I was before the lecture,
bopping along in the exhibit,
enjoying the perspectives of other road and photography enthusiasts,
reading the labels as I went.. until
I was stopped short by this one.
"Gresham, Oregon, 1979", it read.
I flashed back to the visit there with the parents of my first husband, my first - and only - time with the Schillers, in...was it 1979?
No, it was 1980, between Panama and Pensacola, before Okinawa.
That had been the trip that had decided the fate of that marriage.
His mom had insisted that I become a baby-making machine, paying no heed to our wishes.
Keith and I had remained friends, after that, through the divorce, and beyond. Then he had met another and she had insisted that he sunder our friendship. The last I heard, they had four children.
Wow... what a time trip.

So, that's the first ex story. Now for the other.
I had returned home after the reception. (No little hot dogs, but three kinds of grapes and plenty of carrots, celery, sprouts, radishes, grape and cherry tomatoes... and little paper cones of popcorn-topped trail mix!)
I was bopping along the bunny trail of facebook, checking in on folks I know and love and folks new to my life.
Then I happened upon this.

The bit of free-form prose
was all about
"spoiling your girl"
with acts of love,
not acts of commerce.
My response had been swift!
"AMEN! My favorite Christmas gift
ever year from my husband?
He'd buy me a movie I wanted
but he didn't -
like "Monsters, Inc." or "Chicago" -
and then he would
WATCH IT WITH ME
and not complain.
What perfect gifts
those were!"
And they certainly were.
Jeff McDermott knew those would make me happy and would show me that he not only cared... but that he also listened.
We would sit on the couch on Christmas morning, hands touching, sharing the movie-watching experience together.
Know this: he especially didn't like musicals - I mean, really did not.
Yet, there he was, by my side, as I sang along with every song in "Chicago"!
I think that closeness during the fifteen years of our marriage has helped us keep closeness in our friendship since the divorce.

So, that's the second one.
And you know what?
Writing that bit about the Christmas gifts has allowed my future sister-in-law, Laura, more insight into my life, helping us form a friendship.
Sharing the story of my divorce with Sue G, as she tried to hold her umbrella over both of us on the walk back to car this drizzly evening, has helped forge another link in our growing friendship, even outside Boomer activities.
So, I thank my two exes...
and i thank You, God...
for being in my life, once upon a time and still.