a sarah and a john

There's something about relaxing with old friends.

John came up from New Jersey this weekend, and we spent it as old friends will -- a crazy Friday night, followed by a Saturday and Sunday of nothing but lounging around, eating, sleeping, watching TV, shooting the breeze about everything under the sun (love the mixed metaphors? I do). Simon was ecstatic to have Mommy home most of the weekend, and lay around and purred, and all in all it was lovely and peaceful and fun. I was even motivated to cook -- my favorite Greek meatballs (full of rice, parsely, and orange zest) in a tomato-onion-beef-broth sauce. Delish.

So now it's back to the work week, but I have a week's vacation coming up after this one, and I'm excited to lie around and relax, spend all day sitting on the porch if I want, spend all day on a beach blanket if I want, catch up on some writing, mess around on the guitar, hang out with Meg and Phillip, rest in any way I choose. It's been a long eight months on the job (and I'm coming up on my year's anniversary -- the longest I will have ever held a job -- hooray!), and I'm looking forward to the break, so that I can come back to it refreshed.

But nothing beats old friends. John and I were the inseparable duo our senior year at Grove City, and some patterns are pleasant in the repeat. (We were arm-in-arm everywhere in college, racing off to Sheetz for a Shmuffin at ridiculous hours, or correcting snowman anatomy in the dead of night howling our heads off, or misbehaving in any way we could get away with, which wasn't hard since we knew all the security guards, passing notes and making shocking comments in class, raising the eyebrows and mouth corners of our professors.) Mutual affection goes a long way. And it was nice to have someone to bid good morning to as I padded out into the hall on my way to the kitchen to make coffee.

So he left this morning, but neither one of us believes in sad goodbyes, so it was a quick hug and a bright bye-bye! and then off to work for me, and off across the interminable expanse of Ohio for him. He's heading to Pittsburg, and I'm jealous. Marvelous city. Best city. But I love my South Bend, and I'm in love with my life, and church was phenomenal yesterday-- about slowing down, and savoring life, and letting the good things catch up with you, letting the still small voice speak, and not being addicted to the speed, the pace we usually set for ourselves. I, like any good American, plunge myself in the rush -- it's distracting. But it's summer, it's lazy and hot, and it's a good time to take my foot off the accelerator and peel back a few layers and learn to float in the shallows, and not race for the rapids.

Slow down, girl, as Like Summer says.

So it was a beautifully slow weekend, good for the soul, and I'm glad my John was here to share it with me.