A Promise Made

Yesterday evening for Jilda and I was as close to perfection as you can get. We invited some of our best friends over for dinner and spent a few hours together. But in retrospect it was almost like a vacation.
It seems like the older we get, the busier we have become and the same is true for most of our friends. We all recognize that carving out a little quality time with our friends is important, but getting our schedules together is much easier said than done. We succeeded last night and it was magical.
Jilda had to work a few hours yesterday so she got up early and put on the sauce for her famous spaghetti. It simmered in the crock pot all day and it was all I could do to keep from getting a big ol' spoon and eating it right from the pot. While she was at work, I finished straightening up the house and afterwards I went to the store to get wine, fresh bread and for the antipasto I got salami, cheese and green olives. I also picked some ice cream for the raspberry crumb cake which we had for desert.
When our guests arrived it was like a breath of fresh air was breathed into our humble abode. We sat around for hours eating, sipping wine, laughing and talking.
Had you told me when we were younger how much pleasure we would get from sitting around with friends and simply enjoying each other's company, I would have thought you insane. Reflecting back on last night, I can't imagine a better way to spend an evening.
I got an email from guy who graduated from Dora High in 1969 and he was lamenting the fact that he had lost touch with so many of his friends. He asked me if I knew how to contact several people. I was saddened as I read his note because two of the five people on his list are now deceased.
The last few years both Jilda and I have spent a great deal of time on family matters and we too drifted away from our friends. The our situation has changed now and we both made a promise to ourselves this year, that we would spend time and energy reconnecting with friends and family that mean so much to us.
Life is fragile and time slips by fast. If you tarry too long you could miss your chance of letting someone know just how much they mean to you. It is our intention to not let that happen with us. There is a line in the poem "The Ballad of Sam McGee" that goes "a promise made is a debt unpaid" Last night was just the first installment toward paying the debt we owe ourselves.