LITTLE BLUE CAR

The day after the Calgary reading, the marathon of visiting went into high gear. Joan and Renate had loaned me the little blue car, which together with my trusty GPS, took me everywhere. This day started out with a drive to Cochrane to visit the studio of Maureen Enns. Maureen has always been one of my favourite artists ever and I am proud to have hanging in my home at least four of her paintings. Aside from loving the way the paintings look, I very much appreciate that her work is so politically conscious in terms of conservation. To check out her work and learn about her current project dealing with the wild horses of Ghost Forest, go to: www.maureenenns.com. We had a great visit, but it wasn't long enough - I left with still many questions and things I wanted to talk about. But it was a start.

The little blue car then carried me to Springbank where I met my friend Sandi, who was back visiting Calgary from her Kenyan home. I had planned my reading in Calgary to coincide with Sandi's visit from Africa and was very happy to have some extra time with her to catch up.

The car and I drove out to meet my medical partner of years ago, Dr. Jann, whom I absolutely adore. I could not possibly imagine having a better medical partner. We sat with a bottle of wine between us and could have talked for many days. Once more, as with all my visits in Calgary, I felt it was not long enough, that I could have gone on talking for much longer.

The last time I was in Calgary was eight years ago, for the funeral of Betty, a very dear friend and colleague. It was a tragic time for all of us. After my visit with Jann, I joined Betty's family for dinner, and we talked about past and present. They are forever part of my Calgary family.

That little blue car drove me everywhere for a week, out to Rocky View to visit Suzanne and the airedale puppies, nine days old and ten weeks old, and older. That was wonderful. Puppies always smell so....puppy-ish. I love cuddling with them. To check out Suzanne's site, go to: www.airedale-zsuzse.com. The car and I went to coffee with a medical resident, who in just months will be a physician. I delivered her years ago and the thrill of having coffee with her, a woman whom I know will be a superb physician, was really quite marvelous. That blue car took me everywhere, at night to Joan's and Renate's where Eric and James, formerly of Hong Kong, currently of Thailand, had stopped by to visit me, to Rodney's, one of my longest Calgary friends and her very sweet dog Luca, back to Joan's and Renate's again for a dinner party with wonderful guests and conversation. That car drove me past my old house, my hospital, my old office, the medical school, and all the while, the memories were pouring in through the windows and into my heart.

I will always have a fondness for that little blue car, for allowing me to visit with so many good friends and reminiscences. I really do feel that friends are one of the greatest blessings a person can have, and we need to nurture our relationships, not get lazy about our friendships. I have been somewhat remiss in the past, and I am trying to remedy that. Thank you, little blue car, for helping me renew some wonderful friendships.