Here's to many more dinners out on meeting nights!
One of the fondest memories we have of our exit days was when we were at the first day of a circuit assembly and our "wordly" daughter was flying into the nearby airport, arriving around 11:30 a.m. She had left the dubs many years earlier, after a year of pioneering. We were working on resolving our dub-induced estrangement at the time, and said we'd pick her up at the airport and give her our guest room. We were really looking forward to her visit and the chance to reconnect.
I was so conflicted that morning, driving to the assembly site. I kept thinking, should one of us pick her up and take her home and the other stay at the assembly and catch a ride? And how awkward will it be on Sunday to get up, get dressed, and head back to the assembly, leaving her by herself for 10 hours? I imagined that, if I asked in just the right way, perhaps she'd agree to attend the assembly on Sunday.
Then I had a moment of clarity and thought, WTF are you thinking?
When after an hour or so, the announcements were made and everyone stood, we picked up our bags and headed for the door. We drove on surface streets to the airport, about two miles away. We spotted a Starbucks and decided to stop. As we sat drinking coffee and talking, we realized how peaceful this was and how excited we were about our upcoming family reunion. It just took a few minutes to clear the cobwebs and it was like the skies parted and birds started singing. I know, that's corny, but it really was a moment.
And in that moment we both knew, without saying a word, that we'd drive her home, stop some place for a nice lunch, and spend the weekend at the house catching up. It turned into a magical weekend, filled with real love and caring, and the world never looked the same after that.
It was love, and Starbucks, that killed the Watchtower. And all we had to do was miss a meeting.