i wore this for you

"Oh, thank you! I do so love this springtime dress."

Not the dress, silly rabbit. Look closer. I'm talking about the group of chemical symbols spelling out my name. "I wore this for you" is what I said to Sherrill Milnes tonight, pointing out my name. He's been calling me "oo-sure", which seems to be the pronunciation of the word "usher" in other languages.

"Hahahaha! That's a hoot!"

That seems to be the general consensus. Penny told me that's how "usher" would be pronounced in Hebrew. Lonnie, who has a degree in microbiology, thought it very clever to use the chemical symbols. Kim, a former nurse, told me that the chemical symbols are no longer used on labels at the hospitals. The names of the chemicals, including drugs, are spelled out.

"Actually, that doesn't seem odd. Hospitals have to be concerned with malpractice suits, so spelling names in full would be the safer thing to do. How did the Maestro react to your name display?"

He seemed a bit thrown by what F-Au-S-Ti-Na meant, so I'm guessing he's not versed in chemistry. But, when I pronounced my name, he responded "That's a very old name." So, then, of course, I told him about Faustina the Elder and her husband, Antoninus Pius, and the temple in the Forum. He smiled at that, then went on to the sanctuary.

"Well, that's cool! And what was going on tonight? And were you at Asbury Memorial?"

"Back To Broadway" was the event, which would be my penultimate volunteer gig for SVF12. And, yes, this was at my church, and was the final event at this venue.

"I do hope lots of familiar faces were there! After all, Asbury is the home of 'God On Broadway', so folks should have turned out in droves!"

There were some. Helen Downing was there, also Tom Lewis and some of those in the theatre-going group he's put together.

"That's good. Hey, there's something oddly familiar about this photograph..."

Right? I didn't notice the similarity when I took this shot right before the show started. But it looks a lot like that painting the ex has, doesn't it? "Sparkling Night", by Misha Lenn, is its name. I have the magnet of that painting. We'd bought the artwork on that Mediterranean cruise we took in 2002. Smitty had let us have the 8-day trip, a promo offering from Johnson Wholesale Floors, since our 10-year anniversary would fall during it. Plus, I told him I'd take the cruise instead of a raise that year. I knew he'd go for that.

"I remember that. You and Jeff went to the Isle of Capri on October 24th to celebrate the day. Then you went searching for a leather purse when the ferry landed back in Naples. What a memorable vacation that was!"

Most definitely. That's when Jeff noticed my name carved above the pillars of a temple when we were tromping around in the Forum. Wow.

"Wow. That's still such a 'wow' moment, all these years later. So, how was the show?"

The show? Oh, yes, back to the present! So, there were only six singers. Torlef Borsting, who isn't in that stage photo I took, was the only one I didn't know. The three women, from left to right, were Emily Yocum Black (checking her makeup), Kyaunnee Richardson (adjusting her hair), and Leah Huber (perched on the stool). James Wright III and Carlton Moe are the two fellows eying the women raptly. (smile!)

"Yes, very nice! Not exactly like the seriolithograph by Lenn, but definitely in the same flavor."

Exactly. As for the show, there were several songs that I loved. James did such a tender version of "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" that it brought me to tears. "Sing For Your Supper", done by Kyaunnee, Emily, and Leah, in three cutely choreographed numbers, was great fun! But it was "Think Of Me", the one song on tonight's program from "The Phantom Of The Opera", that was the absolute highlight! Kyaunnee sang the part of 'Christine' beautifully... but the unexpected - and surprise to all - cameo performed by Carlton truly stole the entire night!

"I'm sure! I know you have a soft spot for that tenor, don't you?"

 Most def I do! I wonder if he'll be in tomorrow night's musical? I hope so!