Bettianne
Bettianne is a friend of mine. She tells me she loves me with a Zen Master's sense of straight shooting. She is 85 this year and much more active than I am. She is one of the few coming to my birthday dinner which will be hosted by Chaya this Friday.
She is one of the island's elders and has lived on a property built by she and her late husband Gord for many years. One of her very successful sons is on site finishing the job at present. They are adding a wing with many bedrooms to host family and friends.
She was instrumental in bringing me to the island and when Chaya came to tell me her plans, Bettianne called her cell phone only a block from my apartment and told her "don't forget to bring your father home."
At a children's birthday party one day she enlisted her grandson Stanley to take my used plate to the trash. He is a young man in his mid twenties, and he surveyed me closely up and down before doing what she ordered.
I think I told him "don't bother" before she responded "What's the matter? Are your new slaves not good enough for you?"
When I first arrived on Saturna and met her, she offered offered to be anywhere anytime I may need her and promised a dinner at her place and last week sealed the deal with a lovely one. Chaya and I were her guests along with live-in students Emily and Joel. She served a marvelous seafood and mushroom chowder and for desert a lemon souffle.
On her dining room walls were many pictures of family including children and grandchildren. Bettianne sat mostly silently through the meal but she seemed occupied with memories of days gone by...and her eyes were focused on a distant point and filled with the energy of love.
The night of her dinner she sat mostly silent her white hair pulled back tightly framing her face. A face both radiant and ageless and suffused with light and reminding me of images of the very great women of stage and screen.
It was a privilege just to be in her presence.
Last night she appeared as usual at the baseball game and friends brought her [along with her chair] over to meet and sit with Chaya, me and Dylan...and the usual retinue of other children.
She is one of the island's elders and has lived on a property built by she and her late husband Gord for many years. One of her very successful sons is on site finishing the job at present. They are adding a wing with many bedrooms to host family and friends.
She was instrumental in bringing me to the island and when Chaya came to tell me her plans, Bettianne called her cell phone only a block from my apartment and told her "don't forget to bring your father home."
At a children's birthday party one day she enlisted her grandson Stanley to take my used plate to the trash. He is a young man in his mid twenties, and he surveyed me closely up and down before doing what she ordered.
I think I told him "don't bother" before she responded "What's the matter? Are your new slaves not good enough for you?"
When I first arrived on Saturna and met her, she offered offered to be anywhere anytime I may need her and promised a dinner at her place and last week sealed the deal with a lovely one. Chaya and I were her guests along with live-in students Emily and Joel. She served a marvelous seafood and mushroom chowder and for desert a lemon souffle.
On her dining room walls were many pictures of family including children and grandchildren. Bettianne sat mostly silently through the meal but she seemed occupied with memories of days gone by...and her eyes were focused on a distant point and filled with the energy of love.
The night of her dinner she sat mostly silent her white hair pulled back tightly framing her face. A face both radiant and ageless and suffused with light and reminding me of images of the very great women of stage and screen.
It was a privilege just to be in her presence.
Last night she appeared as usual at the baseball game and friends brought her [along with her chair] over to meet and sit with Chaya, me and Dylan...and the usual retinue of other children.
Comments
Post a Comment