This morning, Ray and I got up early (at 8, which is 6 in California) and got ready for church at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Sherman. A friend of ours picked us up at 9:15 and we were there by 9:20. Nothing is too far away in Sherman, but, in this case, the church is literally 8 blocks from our house on our same street. We enjoyed the Mass our young priest offered (North Texas is traditionally more high church, meaning more formal with incense, bells, vestments, and lots of kneeling and crossing oneself). Even in my little hometown of Bonham, which is 25 miles away, I grew up with a Mass that was almost as high church as the one at St.Thomas the Apostle, Hollywood. After church, we went to coffee hour with our friend and chatted with the parishioners there (several of whom are old enough to remember my mother who was a regular there before she died in 2000.) We had a nice time though I had hoped to see Judy Reece, the organist.

The last time we were here, Judy came up at coffee hour and introduced herself to me. She said, “Len, it’s Judy. I’m Duncan’s sister.” At that point, I burst into tears since Duncan, her brother, was a very close friend of mine growing up and also in graduate school. Duncan died long before his time of cancer many years ago. I was surprised at my instant reaction – pure, momentary grief – and then I opened my arms and hugged Judy. “I miss Duncan,” I said, and she squeezed me a little harder. “Me too.” We caught up on our lives since our last time seeing each other, which was more years than I can remember, then promised to get together for lunch with her daughter on one of my future visits. That was several months ago and I have just now returned. I had hoped to continue our conversation today. Hopefully, next Sunday before Ray and I again head out of town.

After coffee hour, we picked up our friend’s wife and headed over to Denison (Sherman’s sister city) and had lunch at Huck’s Restaurant. Huck’s is well-known for its catfish and Ray and I can’t come to Texas and not eat catfish at least once. It was excellent, as usual, and in between bites, we chatted with our friends about what we’d missed since we last saw them Lots of fun.This evening, we ran over for a quick visit with another of our close friends, which made me exceedingly happy.

Overall, a lovely first day here.

Tomorrow, we turn our focus on work. We always try to get as much done while we’re in town as we can. And, yes, between our antique business and work on our Victorian, there is always lots to do.

But right now, I’m going to spend the remainder of the evening relaxing and watching television. Post-trip fatigue has set in and I need to rest.

I’m very happy to be here. I’m also very grateful to come to Sherman and be welcomed literally with open arms. What a lovely treat that is.