Sunday, April 3, 2011

Journey into Spring: Treasured Resources

I am rich with people. They are my renewable, sustainable resources, although I define those terms to mean they renew and sustain me.

This weekend, my husband and I went away for a Weekend with Peeps in Minneapolis and northern Iowa. We did a few museums, wandered around the Upper Mississippi, nosed around the mill district by St. Anthony Falls along the old mills on the Minneapolis riverfront, drove by Lake Harriet, with its gracious homes and trails packed with families, ate at an old firehouse, and ended up in church in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Most important, though, were the people with whom we shared these experiences—Shawn and Berit, two of my former students who graduated the same year and who make their livings as writers; Mary Kay and Will, design stars who moved to Minneapolis from New York several years ago and who share their expertise with me as I prepare another edition of the magazine textbook I co-authored; Elizabeth, another former student, who is now an Episcopal priest.

We shared talks about everything from magazine design to parenting to religion and politics to Native American art. The kinds of talks you can start in the middle because build on a deep foundation.

I am blessed with interesting people in my life, people I appreciate and respect, people who appreciate and respect me. People with whom hours disappear in thoughtful discussions, laughter, and shared memories.

So we returned home tonight fairly pooped, but thoroughly renewed, beautifully sustained.

Rich with people.

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