There was a lot less traffic when I was driving home from Suzanne’s house tonight at 10:30 than there was when I was driving over there at 5:30 pm. Traffic is kind of maddening this time of year, and I tend to isolate myself more and more the closer we get to Christmas. But it was a pleasure to be driving late tonight, with hardly any other cars on the road. Of course, it was 36ºF, and that could have been a factor. We Californians don’t go for that kind of chill.

She and I try to get together for lunch at least once a month, but because of our schedules it just hasn’t worked out for the last several weeks. So, with John out of town on business, we had dinner together tonight. And, as an added bonus, Eric was there, too. I always have fun when I’m with him. We connect on a level that I don’t share with anyone else. I think I grew up a little when he was born, and then I watched him grow up.

We laughed and talked about old times and new times and times yet to come. It’s the kind of conversation, and the kind of relationship for that matter, that only people who’ve known each other all their lives can have. It’s what families are for, and I feel a little sadness for anyone who doesn’t have it, or has lost it. Some families drift apart, but we won’t let that happen. Even people who have been gone for many, many years are still a part of us, because we work at keeping them with us.

Even though I spend a lot of time alone, I’m in daily contact with the family and I never feel isolated. But there’s no substitute for being with them, in one room, wrapped in the shared history and common interests that bind us together. Without that, or the prospect of that, from time to time, I really would feel alone.