John’s sister Chris and Steve had a party for us celebrating two birthdays and a graduation. We met at a restaurant in Columbia, SC, roughly half the distance between our homes. I adore helium balloons, having not had them in my childhood. There was a balloon for three of us, tied to the backs of our chairs. When I took a photo of the group, I concentrated on getting all the faces.

The faces had smiles on them throughout the meal as we chatted about the joys of cruising (two for, two against, and one not experienced), mutual friends from our church on Long Island, special time that Dr. Mehrling spent with his children, one hilarious story about shoes in bed, and another about a dog house that turned out to be a pump house for the well. As usual, conversation never flagged.

Although the happy faces were no longer under the balloons, I thought the balloons deserved their own preservation. Wait staff and patrons commented on them in the restaurant, and we had many wishes for a happy birthday as we walked outside. Note to self: balloons are real attention-getters in a public place.