Blogs the next few days will be a little different. Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t blog at all, but having taken on a challenge to blog every day for thirty days straight one has to get a little, well, resourceful.

The reason I wouldn’t normally be blogging the next few days?

Two farewell lunches today and a farewell weekend away with girlfriends tomorrow. It’s that time of year when people start to leave, and because many of my friends have seniors in high school it’s a natural point for them to move on to another place or move back home. These parents are having leaving ‘do’s’ early so as not to interfere with Graduation in May.

Which means for those of us left behind the goodbyes are starting earlier than ever.

It’s bittersweet. We celebrate with and support those who are packing up and saying goodbye, we reminisce, laugh, encourage and hold back the tears till we are safely home. It’s emotionally exhausting in so many ways, on so many levels.

For the left-behinds that stark realisation we have to make new friends. Again.

I leave for the weekend tomorrow morning with the remnants of ‘our group’. We were eight, now we are four but the hearts all of us will be there tomorrow, C and N are in New Jersey and California respectively, B is in Belgium (and will be joining us) and A is in Shanghai. We have a pretty good idea how our time together will be, having done this so many times before.

The eight of us have history. Everything we’ve ever done together has been fun, glorious fun. As soon as we’re in that car tomorrow on the way to Spa, Belgium, the fun will start.

One trip to Edinburgh we were at the airport six hours early so we could be together, shop and have coffee at Starbucks. Another weekend to Maastricht took eight hours to get there because we had to stop for lunch enroute and lost the car. Well, forgot where we parked it.

The spirit of those who have already left will be with us in the laughter and reminiscences, memories are the bonds that bind us together for always.

So forgive me if I need to take a moment to regroup and get back on track.

Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible. Consider the posts over the next few days as lagniappe, that wonderful New Orleans expression for ‘a bit extra’.