Georgia on my mind

We have returned from our trip to Georgia. My long anticipated weekend has passed. I fell in love with so much of the small amount of Georgia that I saw. I loved the beautiful city of Savannah with its historic buildings full of wrought iron, brick and cobblestones. The river front area with bars, restaurants and shops. The trolley's and riverboats waiting to take visitors on a tour of this gorgeous city. I enjoyed walking into little establishments, buying my drink and walking about with my family.

We were blessed with nice weather most of the days of our trip. The sun was shining and warm as it reached into the mid 80 degrees! It felt so good to sit in the sun and soak up the warmth! At night when the weather was cool we sat in the yard around a fire. I got to meet me Aunt Erdine who is my Dad's oldest sister, along with her husband and son. We drank some, had some laughs and suprised my father with my sister Teisha.

See, my Dad knew I was coming obviously, and he knew my sister Heidi would be there. We kept Teisha coming as a secret and an early birthday present to him. It would be the first time he would have all of his daughters together in one place. We did manage to suprise him which was fantastic! I think he may have even shed a tear (maybe it was the fire, lol) We were able to take the first of what I hope will be many family pictures together. Another first to check off my list.

We spent Saturday visiting and touring Savannah. Tony and my sisters and I walked down river street having a blast. I couldn't ask for a better tour guide than my Dad. He is fun and has a great sense of humor. I got to know Diana more over those days and I truly enjoy her company. She is a loving woman as sweet as can be!

Tony, Teisha and I went back to tour Savannah after Heidi had to leave. We went to eat at Paula Deen's restaurant Lady & Sons. It was beautiful inside the restaurant and the food was good. We had a great time y'all! haha. I wanted to tour the oldest Catholic church in Savannah, The Cathedral of John the Baptist. It was more beautiful than I thought with the stained glass and high ceilings. It is a site to see for sure.

My favorite part of Georgia was the time I had with my father, sisters and family. When I got off the plane I can't tell you how I felt when I saw Heidi waiting for me too! I saw Bren't face and thought how lucky I am to have these new relationships. It is unbelievable to me how quickly I am attached to this new family. There is such a thrill to seeing him this time as opposed to the last few. I am seeing a man that I have developed a relationship with, not a stranger. When I see him , I see me in him now. I always thought I was all my mother but there are definately pieces of him in me too.

On Monday when we were getting ready to leave, I looked at my father sitting in the chair. I thought about the dream I had the night before. It was a strange dream. I was a young girl, maybe 3 or 4 years old (in the dream I looked much like the picture of me on this blog) and I was walking with Brent holding his hand. He was a young man, and looked like a picture I had seen of him from Heidi the day before. I looked up at him and he looked down at me and smiled. It is all I remember of the dream. When I was in flight on the way home this dream came back to me. I suddenly remembered that this was the same first memory I had of my father. At his funeral I wrote about walking with him hand in hand. I've said all along my father has had a part in us meeting- for me this was just another sign that he is here with us now.

There is so much joy for me. I am thankful for each minute I have with him. I try desperately not to think of all the time we could have had together had I just had the courage to contact him 10 years ago. I am trying to engrave every minute, every memory I can make into my mind and heart.

So, time has gone too quickly as I knew it would. At the airport I told him as we embraced that I didn't want to let go. Teisha and I watched him walk away and shared something as sisters- a need for this man that is our father. It will be some time before I see him again. I got on that plane after saying goodbye to him , then my sister Teisha and cried. The visit was great but the pain of leaving is hard to explain. For a brief second I wished I hadn't come. That is how much my heart hurt. Of course that was just for a moment. The time I had was precious and is banked in my heart forever.

Now, time will travel just so slowly until I get to see my mother. Seeing her, Heather and Jesi is my next journey and I'm sure when that time in February comes it too will pass like the speed of light. I feel oddly more connected to my mother now. Meeting the other half of me has been a hard process for her I'm sure. But, once again she wants what is best for me. Knowing Brent now may not be like knowing him in 1972 as my mother knew him but I can see what may have attracted her to him. He has an aura about him that is charming and irresistable.

So, on to my next adventure. Northern Maine in February! Am I crazy? No, I wouldn't miss it for anything.