Homes Away from Home
From Friends Week in DC, I flew to Austin TX on September 29 to spend a delightful weekend with Shelby, Sean, Stephen and Thomas, whom I’d last seen in July. The five of us spent several hours in the Bullock Texas State History Museum. In addition to the displays I’d seen before, there were lots of excellent new videos chronicling the music scene in Austin and a special exhibit of African American Art. Remembering wonderful times I’d had in Austin from 1954 to 2021, I felt just as “at home” as I had felt in DC the previous week. I’ve learned that “home” is more than an address, it’s a place to find family, friends, familiar sites and food you love. Here’s the home I found in Austin:
Maybe I seek home away from home, because I literally can’t go home again; Phillips, Texas is a ghost town, deserted and fenced off. Meeting with friends who had grown up there and now live in Austin, was yet another way to feel at home. Sharon Flinn Blythe, PHS ’64, is a retired accountant and a faithful alum. Dana Wright Rushing, PHS ’68, is an political activist who recently organized a group dedicated to assisting progressive candidates win elections. Ray L. Robbins, Jr. who also has a home in St. Louis, was in my class of ’62 at Phillips High, where his father was the greatly esteemed band director. Here we four are together at Hula Hut in Austin.
On my last day in Austin, October 2, Rebecca Raiza, daughter of my only first cousin Jerry, came for dinner. Here we are at Jerry’s funeral in Dallas two years ago. That was a sad occasion, but it was wonderful to be together then and now, remembering the homes our her father and my mother had created.
On Wednesday, October 11, Steve and I drove to another place where we feel at home: Beaufort SC. Our dear friends Allene and Jim Cooley have a house near the golf course where Jim and Steve have been members for many years. Here are photos from May 2020, when we dared to get together with the Cooleys and the Collins:
Cousins Maxann and Jay Collins, were there again, as were Allene’s cousins Keeter and Mike Sechrist. This was the same crew we had together during the 2021 Blue-Gray tournament. It rained for the first two days this year, so we got to watch some classic movies that Maxann recommended: Casablanca, Sunset Boulevard, and Gaslight (at last, I know just what that term means!) My pictures in 2021 were more expressive than those I got this year, so click here to compare 2021 with these in 2023.
It’s great to have homes/families in Texas and South Carolina. Now I look forward to November when my Quail Ridge Chorus family resumes rehearsals here in Florida, a week in Massachusetts with Lilli and Violet, and Thanksgiving with David’s extended family in Coral Gables. I am so lucky to have so many homes! I pray for peace and safety for all the families in our world.
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