Niece Julie mentioned that her group of childhood friends were planning a girls’ weekend in the mountains, so we offered our house as the venue. I was sure that a laughter-filled house would benefit us more than the savings would help them. They agreed to pose for a group picture before setting off to explore Waynesville.

These young women grew up together in a small community near Charlotte. Their group jokes go back to Kindergarten, so they have a rich heritage. It slowly dawned on me that they were in and out of my brother’s house all the time. They saw him much more often than I did.

The horses that board in the pasture behind us were pleased to see us coming out with left-over apples. A chomp and a swallow took care of each offering.

There were no takers for sharing our morning walk. It was understandable. These ladies work hard all week and needed a morning without a schedule. We found that neighbors Connie and Dave, at the end of the street, provided a red carpet for our viewing pleasure. We would share that instead of exercise.