My husband and I have come to Corpus Christi to see our daughter, Sarah, who is a 3rd year medical student doing her rotations down here on the Texas coast. She’s been here since July and we’ve seen her a couple of times in California or at our home in North Central Texas, but this is our first trip down to where she’s living for these next several months.

Of course, just getting to spend an uninterrupted week-end with Sarah is an unusual treat. Since she began medical school, free time with her has been rare to non-existent, given the intensity of her studies. And this came after I literally saw her everyday when she was in pre-med, so this absence has been tough. Needless to say, of course, I’m happy to simply be in her presence, this girl of mine who looks more like her father than me, with her finely chiseled cheekbones, round eyes, and light skin. Just to hang out is a pleasure since she is not just my child, but someone I genuinely like, a compliment not all parents can bestow on their offspring.

Today, we all slept late, then ate breakfast here in her little apartment, which has a combination of old and new furniture, the old coming from us and our overflowing collection of odd-ball, but cool antiques. An old coffee table in her living room that her dad bought at a garage sale, and two chairs he recovered from the trash, where an Austin College student left them when he graduated and was leaving town. These combined with a maple table and four chairs from Sarah’s boyfriend, and a futon from Craig’s List she bought for $50.  Her apartment smells sweet when you walk in, like scented candles, and there is a collection of elephants in different sizes on the shelf that divides the small living room from the equally small kitchen. The place is homey, even though she is gone 12 hours a day most weeks, and will be spending even less time here when her surgical rotation starts after Christmas.

We went off to see the U.S.S. Lexington this afternoon, an aircraft carrier permanently docked down on the bay, which was built in the ’20’s and served for longer than any other ship of its kind in the Navy. We climbed up and down ladders to get to all the different levels, looked at the variety of airplanes displayed on the deck, watched a movie on a captured submarine in World War II, and looked at the bridge and the captain’s quarters. We ran out of time before we saw the 47 bed hospital and the 6 rooms which housed the dental clinic. Ray and I might go back on Monday and finish the tour when Sarah goes to the hospital to start her Ob-Gyn rotation. We leave early Tuesday morning.

This evening we ate at a seafood restaurant right on the bay – grilled shrimp and tilapia – and watched as a little fishing boat drove right up and docked next to the restaurant and the people came in to eat. The sky was gray all afternoon and the water in the Gulf was an emerald green. Quite stunning in contrast.

This evening we sat and talked for a while about residency programs, family, and upcoming holiday plans, then settled down  to watch a movie, “The Beaver,” with Mel Gibson and Jodie Foster about a father who is deeply depressed and uses a stuffed animal to break out of his funk. Not the greatest of movies – rather odd by all counts – and yet, sweetly touching about the transformational power of love.

Being with Sarah is a chance to see that our girl is still right here and doing well, working hard and meeting one challenge after the other in her life. This is a tough road she’s picked and being down in Corpus Christi while her boyfriend is in CA, along with all of her family, is yet one more brave step she’s taken. And she keeps on plugging along, one foot in front of the other, even when sometimes that’s the last thing she wants to keep doing.

Of course, I am proud of her, but saying that somehow puts me in the picture. I am more simply pleased for her, and learn from her example that this is how one meets those tough challenges in life: one step at a time.  I am truly impressed by her fortitude.

I can hear Sarah and her dad laughing in the other room. I suspect they are now watching Saturday Night Live. I’m glad they like each other – get each others’ sense of humor – and can be so relaxed when they’re together.

And I’m pleased that when I see her, the time away fades as if it was only yesterday that we last saw each other, and we are right back to where we always are.

Tomorrow we are going off to Port Aransas, a town on an island not too far away. I like this South Texas coast. I’ve never been to Corpus Christi and have only been to the Gulf a couple of times in my life. Time slows down here, maybe because we’re all together with no outside pressures, or maybe because the water and the wind make everything feel more fundamental and life takes on a different rhythm. I don’t know exactly why coastal places seem to have this quality, but I must say it’s nice.

Mainly, I’m just happy for this time together and feel lucky to get this moment.