I must say, I am overwhelmed.

Yesterday, Annette and Lisa threw me a surprise baby shower.  I was completely surprised, and completely taken aback.  And so honored.

After these many children, you think people wouldn’t care anymore to celebrate with you.

I was wrong.  Curtis wanted to go shopping with his lady.  He took me out, this week as he had a couple weeks ago, to buy grass seed, and lawn chemicals.  To go shopping with Curtis is to hit several stores, so we were really gone for about two hours.

I was starving when we got home, since we left at lunch time.  We saw Christie’s car in the driveway when we rode up.  I walked in the house, looking for Christie.  I saw carrots on the dining room table.  Good.  I was hungry.  Then, I heard, ‘surprise!’ And I saw all these women jumping out to surprise me!

I was surprised to see Tammi Martin.  She and her family are going to Wisconsin for two weeks today.  And Redice was here.  And Abigail.  And Barbie.  Miriam was here. Annette and Lisa were snapping pictures.  I felt so blissfully out of control.  I didn’t have to run around, taking pictures, trying to make everything just right.  I just got to sit down.  Christie was here, too.

We played fun shower games–guess the baby food.  Tammi won that.  Then anagrams of names you can make with Curtis and my full names.  I won that–by 1.  Miriam was close. . . Sherese had arrived in time for that one.  Then we played a cool game where you feel a stapled brown paper bag to guess the baby item inside. Miriam won that one.

I opened presents.  I was embarassed by all the blessing.  I think I better pour my heart out in the thank you notes before baby, or I may never get to it. Christie had to leave for work after anagrams.  I was grateful she’d come.

Earlene and Joy came during the gifts.  Tracie came after that–she had a class.

I remember a time when I didn’t have any friends.

I seem to have a knack–a gift, for making friends with people who move away.  P. and I were good friends in college.  She graduated the semester before I did, and moved away.  We haven’t lived in the same city since 1988.  She was my maid of honor, and we had kept in touch until about 5 years ago.  I called her when Mommy died, and we were back on.  She lives in St. Croix, but came to visit the other day.  Her parents still live in Ann Arbor.

Carol was my first friend I’d made as an adult. We made a concerted effort to get together regularly for a couple of years.  We always invited our children to each others’ birthday parties.  She moved soon after Imani was born.  We keep in touch, and she came to visit from North Carolina a few years ago.

I had put off getting to know Patricia better until she was ready to move. I regret the lost time.  She was a wonderful rock for me when Mommy died.  She even made a special visit and gave me her latest book of poetry, Becoming Ebony.

I talked to Keisha yesterday.  She’s another friend that moved away. I think she would have come to the shower if she’d known about it.  When you do a surprise shower, you depend on your family and friends to know all about each other; sometimes that doesn’t pan out.  I’ll bet P. would have come, too. . .

Candace is another friend that is about to move.  We’ve known each other since high school, and her family in Kalamazoo is huge.  She’s ecstatic about teaching in the DC area, and I’m excited for her.  She promises to summer in K-zoo, so we’ll see where that leads.

I am very grateful to add actual friends in town that I can see often to the list of friends I miss.

Again, God answered prayers of my heart–for something I didn’t even know I wanted.