A Chance Reward

I've been trying to figure out how to write this post for a few days now

trying to find the "slant", as if I was a reporter or something

 the story is too broad, has too many angles, and I know if I had an editor they would be asking me what it is I'm trying to say

whenever I can't figure something out, I write

writing always makes my thoughts come together; loosely at first, but as I go, clarity creeps in and my thoughts and words become tighter and tighter and after a few paragraphs, the story emerges

 

I met someone

nothing odd about that really - except that I met someone on purpose who I discovered accidentally...

and it was marvelous

when we were invited to the wedding in California I got out the map, as I always do before a road trip, and looked to see where we were going and how we would get there, and I realized we would be passing very closely to where a favourite blogger of mine lived

Sherry, from Creatology

I took a deep breath, emailed her and told her what we were up to, wondering if she might like to meet

 some of the best things in life happen when you take a chance, and we took a chance on each other

Sherry and I

Sherry not only wanted to meet, she and Mr. C very graciously opened their home to us, with the most amazing welcome ever

we had a wonderful time with them, touring their town, and their neighbourhood, enjoying their piece of heaven on earth

when you discover someone through their blog, all you really know about them is what they choose to tell you - no intuition from body language, no context, just words and photos that, although they can tell you much, they aren't the whole story

so meeting up is a true leap of faith and trust

I'm so glad we both took that leap!

Sherry is every bit as delightful in person as she is on her blog and within minutes the online Sherry and the person merged together, and she was a true friend

we talked

we talked of new things, we had extensions of conversations we have had back and forth through email, and I was able to see in person, the places and things she has written of over the years

Sherry's book

we even got down to brass tacks in her studio and I shared what I know of book binding and Sherry made a book of her own

 I love the fabric she ended up using 

( this isn't the first one she chose -  I loved that one so much she gave it to me!)

I showed her how to make the covers and the signatures 

(I brought special papers to share with her, and she shared some of her special ones right back)

we had such a special, wonderful morning in her studio - one I will never forget as we shared stories, laughter, creativity and knowledge, and it was easy

Sherry is one of the most creative, caring and sharing people I have ever met and it was such a joy to be able to spend time with her

lucky, lucky me

but the story doesn't end there....

it's one thing for us bloggers to connect on line, share stories and ideas, hopes and ideals, and want to cement an online friendship with a meeting in person...

it's an entirely different thing when we involve our husbands!

when I first spun the idea of stopping there by Marc he was willing, surprised a little, but willing all the same

he did ask what I thought he would do while we were there

I believe he said something along the lines of "So will I just hang out with her husband, is that how it works? Or should I take a book?"

I told him he could bring a book if he wanted, but that I had a vague recollection of a blog post Sherry did sometime ago about Mr. C and his talents with automobiles.... and that they just might have something in common...and they did!

so much so in fact, that I never saw hide nor hair of him after dinner, or the next morning

Mr. C not only showed him the ins and outs of his garage and what he does, but the next morning, took him on a tour that began with breakfast with about 18-20 car enthusiasts, and continued on with visits to a few of their garages and workshops.

all he could say, over and over, for days was "wow!"

  he was amazed by the generosity of spirit that Mr. C showed him in sharing all of the above, including a ride around in his special car

and so we both have special memories of a wonderful thing that happened when two bloggers took a chance on each other

 the visit didn't end with us thinking that if they ever came our way we would love to welcome them as well, but that we dearly hope they will come our way someday...

thank you so much Sherry and Mr. C!