|
Week6-9
Feb |
Today is the last day of the shortest
month of the year -- and though there have only been 28
calender days this month-- it has been a '31er' as far
as things to remember it by. Of course the thing
that will place it high on the list of our finest
memories are all the events, feelings, friends and
people involved in Mireilles 40th birthday celebrations.
We decided a couple of years ago, that when the time
came for her 40th we were going to use it as an excuse
put together a celebration, in all the style we could
muster, together with our freinds, to highlight and
focus on the very finest, most beautiful and
most wonderful things 40 years can give, --
And the morning after --- we really felt we had
succeeded!! We didn't suceed
completely at keeping everything as a complete
surprize for the birthday girl - but her jaw did drop a few inches a
time or two!! Nathalie (Mireilles sister from northern
Sweden) expressed it so nicely in
a speech she gave .
She said, that some of Mirielles childhood experience
didn't make it possible for her to celebrate many of the
ordinary growing up milestones celebrated in our
culture - graduation,
confirmation etc, so now when we have the means
and capacity (and will) to 'observe and rejoice'
we will see that it is done correctly!
Our
home may lack some of the luxuries we sometimes
could wish -- but it doesn't lack space!! (1050 square
meters heated area) so we started a couple of months in
advance
renovating an approx 120 sq meter area that we use
for
gatherings of this kind -- and then the last week,
one of Nathalies friends that is a proffessional scene
lighting consultant came with a bunch of equiptment and
spent a day setting up a
beautiful backdrop and party lighting system
-- another friend that is a florist did all the floral
decorations -- a number of neighbors took on the task of
some of the different food dishes so that this task
didn't fall on Mireille as it usually does. We got
some help with installing a sound and music system
as found a presentation projector that suited the room.
The kids all pitched in as best they could, and to make
it even easier the week prior was our winter
vacation week so they were off school.
Mireille completed the task of inviting 70 of her
closest friends -- and of making a placing arrangement
(which wasn't all that easy considering the
multi-culture, varied background and way of life, our
friends happen to have!!) A half an hour before the
guests started arriving we pronounced ourselves
'ready'!!
Five of Mireilles friends had wisked
her away in the morning to a
hotelbreakfast in town as well as
massage -- hair dressing - and ''make-up' present .
so she was out of the way for the final preparations. Ellen
is taking the 'hotel and restaurant' program in high
school so got
three of her fellow students to help her with food
serving and be hosts for the evening. They did it
beautifully! After an hour or so
in 'mingle' we finally got everyone
sitting down to the tables and the
program could begin --
(to be continued soon!) |
