Missing photo of wonderful reunion
You’re going to have to take my word for this story.
I wish there were photos to share.
The fact that there are not, well, that’s kind of exactly the point.
A remarkable thing happened this weekend. I went to a ladies’ luncheon. Before 2020, this would not have been newsworthy.
Now? To be able to type those words is simply beyond.
My favorite group of women friends have been meeting over Zoom for well over a year. Every Sunday, 11 a.m. These Zoom calls have kept us connected. They are one of those unexpected gifts of the pandemic.
In the “Before Times” we were good about gathering a few times a year for a birthday or holiday.
Every week? Who had time for that?
But a simple Zoom call, where you didn’t have to go anywhere or put on a stitch of makeup? That was doable. A lifeline. We’ve kept up on health, jobs, families, kids, parents, pets.
And more recently, vaccinations.
“I was able to get the Pfizer,” one friend shared early on. She works at a hospital.
“Moderna for me,” another one said a few weeks later so happy she was able to find an appointment.
“I found Johnson & Johnson. One and done!” I shared three weeks ago.
As more and more of us had the opportunity to shoot up, so to speak, a possibility started to be born.
“I’d like to have the Pretty Ladies over to my backyard in April,” the hostess with-the-mostest of our group volunteered.
Which is what led us to this gathering. To side hugs and air kisses. To just enjoying each other’s company.
To no one hurrying anywhere. I think it was 3:45 p.m. before the first of us started to make the move.
Has this happened to you, too, Dear Reader?
You’re slowly getting a chance to see your people in person. It’s magnificent, yes?
I will have this Ladies gathering as a memory forever.
As a photograph, not so much. We were so happy to be together we all kind of forgot. Until the very end.
This is when I went to grab a few.
I tried using the self-timer on my camera phone to get all of us in one photo.
I propped up my phone in a bowl of oranges that made up the centerpiece.
Creative, yes.
Effective? Not so much.
I cut off our heads.
The next photo was out of focus.
Then, I ran around too late. There’s this one photo of no one looking at the camera, rather to the side, watching me trying to make the mad dash to get into frame.
At first, it seemed like such a shame.
This moment should be properly documented!
I’ve changed my mind.
After a year of connecting only through screens, I now believe it was time to simply be seen.
No screens were used in the making of this moment. You’ll just have to take my word for it. Only one fits.
Perfection.