Glutton for Punishment
That appears to be an appropriate title for me these days. It's not actually that bad, really. A few hours ago, Grace and I arrived home from another whirlwind tour of the state. This time we didn't make it all the way to San Diego though. We stopped about an hour north in Temecula.
Sunday was my mentor, Burt', s 40th birthday. His wife and pastoral staff threw him a huge surprise party on Saturday night...Grace knew I really wanted to be there for it so Friday after work we tossed clothes and food into the car and set off for SoCal. We rolled into out adopted family's house at about 4:30 Saturday morning. We spent a relaxing day in the most kickass swimming pool I've ever been it...I am definitely a salt water pool convert. Anyway, that evening Grace and I headed off to Burt's church. He was shocked beyond belief to see us there (It had been almost a year since i saw him last) and so excited that he introduced us to everyone who walked by.
We managed to come up with a convincing enough reason to show up without giving away any information about his birthday. At the endo of the service, Burt's wife brought out a huge birthday cake with 40 candles and we could see the wheels turning in Burt's head. As soon as things settled down a bit, Grace and I made our way back over to him. This time we said "Happy BIrthday" and gave him the card we had. His response cracked me up (and i quote), "No...shut up! You didn't! Wow, you girls really drove all the way from Sacramento for me. Wow...I am really special." The way his face lit up was worth the entire drive.
See, Burt is one of the most important people in my life. I don't see him very often anymore, but that in no way diminishesthe impact he's had on my life. Many of the things that my friends love about me are the direct result of Burt's influence. I worked for him when I lived in San Diego, and to be perfectly honest, if he had the resources, I'd be working for him right now. He's one of the most non-judgemental and caring human beings you could hope to meet. People are his passion...well, people and extreme sports. He loves all things that speed but he's a surfer first and foremost.
I was really thankful to get to hang out with Burt this weekend. It's what my soul needed to reenergize. The eight hour drive didn't even seem too bad...now if only I didn't have to start another week up here...I would be ecstatic. I have a feeling that another roadtrip is in my not too distant future...
posted by Audrey @ 1:55 AM
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