"All by myself..."

The title of this blog is referring to the great Celine Dion's anthem of loneliness. I am sitting in my house, all by myself. Only I am the farthest away from being lonely that anyone could possibly be. I am kept great company by my good, but rarely seen friends, QUIET and CLEANLINESS. They hardly ever stop by, so it's brought me so much happiness that they have decided to stay over for two nights. My relative, MY NEEDS, has also stopped by for a visit. She insists I eat whatever I want, watch whatever I want, and do whatever I want, whenever I want to. And she doesn't demand a thing.

Since I knew I'd be having this special gathering of occasional friends, I invited over COMFORT and REST. COMFORT insisted that I not stress out about looks, and took care of my hair and wardrobe herself - unwashed hair and jammies all day. And even though I was a little embarrassed leaving the party that I was hosting, REST insisted I take a nap with Jude....two times. I love these friends. We have the kind of relationship where years can pass with no contact, but when we get together it's as if we've never been apart. I am filled with abundant happiness and joy, and only wish this weekend gathering could last a week....maybe even a month.

I was able to host this gathering because Jakob took Kobe and Luke to the Ward Campout. I was planning on going, but got to thinking about how overwhelming it would be to take Jude, so my baby and I decided to stay at home. My less selfless friends - my family - will be returning tomorrow. Boy, do I love those boys. But years ago there was a falling out between my above mentioned friends and my little family. My friends gave me the ultimatum - us or them. It was so hard to say good-bye to CLEANLINESS, QUIET, MY NEEDS, COMFORT, and especially REST. But if I had to do it all over again, I'd choose my family every time.

My friends have assured me that every once in awhile, as long as my kids aren't home, they'll stop by for a quick visit. But, we both know that won't be very often. So I'm really savoring this time alone, with my friends.