Yesterday I bought a medium-size Canadian and Bacon pizza at Papa Murphy’s and drove it to Jessie Richards’ place near Enchanted Island in Spanaway. She popped it into the oven and we started to chat, catching up on some of the stuff that has happened to each of us since the last time we got together for the occasion of Mary Jane Cooper’s 100th birthday celebration two years ago.
Jessie, Judi Cooper and I have made plans several times to get together during the in-between times, but they managed to get pre-empted by other matters. For example, she and Judi were invited to our Hoh Rainforst/Ruby Beach outing last year with Lisa Twining and Tracey Ramoa, but neither could go, sadly.
Not long after, Judi Cooper arrived with a yummy, scrumptious salad she had prepared for the occasion.
Within minutes of her arrival, Judi stated, “I have never seen you looking so well. Your decision to move to Costa Rica has changed you!” (Paraphrasing slightly, since that’s what she meant).
I responded, “I feel ten years younger. Didn’t know I looked all that different, though!”
That was soooo great to hear!
My body, heart and spirit know it’s the right decision, even though the hoops I will have to jump through and the permanent, sudden switch to a vehicle-less condition when I get there are giving me a few moments of unsettled nerves. I only know two people in CR right now, and they only virtually, so it’s going to be quite the challenge to develop a support structure and systems to keep me keepin’ on down there. Bus routes, how to get from where I’ll be landing at the airport to my landlocked destination and, later, all the way to San Jose to stand before the Consulate chiefs who will fingerprint me and get my official papers… It’s a lot to think about, so I have to keep reminding myself, “One day at a time. Sufficient unto the day are the to-do’s thereof!”
When the pizza was ready, we gathered around the small table and solved all the world’s problems as we enjoyed our communal meal and the desserts that followed, including chocolate and vanilla ice cream and homemade brownies, compliments of Jessie. I overindulged on all of it: the yummy salad, four small slices of pizza, and a portion of all three desserts!
After that, we walked around Enchanted Island as we visited some more. Judi and Jessie collected the discarded fishing lines and hook that were strewn across the bridge and disposed of it so no wild critters would get tangled in them…
Back at Jessie’s house, we moved to her porch area, which faces a cove off Spanaway Lake across from Bresemann Park, where Fantasy Lights are displayed during this time every year between now and New Year’s Day. It was daytime, so the lights weren’t on yet, but we were able to watch ducks and look for beavers in the cove while we chatted some more.
The visit lasted over three hours and was NOT long enough. I had to get home before dark to get the chickens in for the night, so I left about 4 p.m. We are planning at least two more of these get togethers between now and when I leave in (I’m aiming for) June.
I forgot to take pictures. I will do my best to remember the next two times we reconnect.
I am going to miss these two kindred spirits, in addition to Lisa Twining and Edward Smith. Although we don’t get together often even now, when we do, it is so easy to fall right back into kindredship. These are the siblings I would have chosen for myself, had I been given the option. “True friends are the families we choose for ourselves.” Jessie,Judi and Lisa have promised to fly down and visit me after I get settled. Judi has been to Costa Rica before and loved it. Jessie was born in Panama, and wants to see it again, so we’ll have to take that trip when she gets down my way.
I won’t be friend-less in Costa Rica for long. And thanks to so many virtual meeting options (Zoom, facebook, etc.), I will always be able to stay in touch with my stateside friends and with the family members who still choose to connect after I move.
It’s going to be fine. Just fine. I’m sleeping like a baby at night. I’m looking at casitas in the area where I’ll locate first so I can arrage to visit and choose one of them within days of arrival. I’ll stay at a cheap hotel until I find the one that best floats my boat. I want to settle fast so Charli (my cat) doesn’t feel unsettled for very long, and so I can start padding around the new neighborhood to familiarize myself with the local people, places and medical facilities. I need my blood clotting levels checked monthly unless I can get on another drug in CR through the caja system that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg and allows me to go months or even a year between blood clotting checks.
Above image courtesy of Jessie Richards and Lisa Twining. That’s Jessie on her beloved horse, Fancy, with me in the foreground, back in the day, in my robin’s egg blue Roy Rogers cowboy outfit! Thank you (heaps!) to Lisa Twining for colorizing this image!
