Que sera, sera!

The boys from Atlanta came.  They saw.  They conquered - walked the Rockland boardwalk and out the Rockland breakwater, shopped at Planet Toys and had lunch at Rock City Cafe, went out on Captain Jack's lobster boat (where Cachao saved a little lobster's life by bravely picking it up and tossing it back into the water), played miniature golf, hiked in Camden State Park, went up the Owls Head lighthouse, threw rocks at the beach, drank apple juice left and right, tested David's pancake making stamina, had Dorman's ice cream AND Gifford's ice cream, wore out Ella, helped with my chores including watering the garden, scattered Legos everywhere, played Tenzies (dice game recommended by Melissa--thanks!) with a vengeance, filled in and then told Mad Lib tall tales, and generally livened up this old folks' home until its 150+ year old walls (and almost as old wall paper) rang with laughter - and now they're testing Manhattan's ability to withstand the same before heading back south tomorrow. What a wonderful visit!  

Cello, the cutie.

Handsome Cachao.

On Captain Jack's lobster boat - Cello looks for a seal spotted nearby.

The little lobster saved by Cachao - to be eaten by him on a date to be determined.

"Trapped" at Claws, the latest tourist trap.

I miss them already!  The house is very quiet.  The coffee table is very neat.  I haven't stepped on a stray Lego all day.  I think I've picked up all the plastic straw wrappers dotting the carpet throughout the house from the multiplicity of emptied juice boxes.  I'm already thinking ahead to a 2016 road trip of our own - when David and I (and maybe even Ella!) can take a trip down to Nashville to visit Aunt Maro, Carol, Debbie and David, on to North Carolina to see Melissa, John and Austin again, and then to Atlanta - for Sam, Melina, Cachao, Cello, Tia Corinne and Uncle John!  Between now and then, maybe  a flying visit by Abuela.

Meanwhile, I have today and tomorrow off of work and then it's down to 8 more working days.  The future seems ... wide open, unknown, both exciting and scary as hell.  I remember back in 1992, when I left a good job in NYC and Sam and I moved to Georgia, I had no idea what would happen next, which freaked me out, could cause me to break out in a cold sweat.  But I used to tell myself, "Anything can happen!"  In the end, I guess what happened was life.  

And now, here I am again where it seems anything can happen.  I guess that's always the case, just sometimes we close our eyes to it.  I hope my eyes can stay open - to whatever comes next.  That's all there is, after all.  

My mother wasn't really a "music person" but she had a couple of songs she used to hum, even sing.  One was, "Que sera, sera!"  "Whatever will be, will be," it says, and goes on, "the future's not ours to see... que sera, sera!"

Peace.