Author: Frances

My cute sister’s cute guest room at the beach. Yay so happy to be back in Carolina! Happy 4th everybody!

Another beautiful birthday dinner for a beautiful girl. Magical setting and perfect night. #greenandwhite so divine always @apiciusparis

A preview of what’s to come from dinner at Versailles… The fireworks came at the end…

Moss Art at the Palais Royale. Forgive me blanking on the name of this imaginative Japanese artist. I will hunt it down and report back! #mossart

What a festive and pretty evening this was, with the tables beautifully decorated in moss and kumquat topiaries and. Rousseau-esque backdrop. Celebrating the birthday of a glamorous, darlin’ friend at #polodeparis

And what is not to love about blue and white toile. My pretty chambre at the #hotelsanregis , Paris.

Always happy to be Paris. It’s a great walking city and fun to run into old friends, by which I mean museums, statues, stores, cafes, and of course churches. My walk last night landed me in the middle of a gospel choir concert at Saint Germain des Pres. Swipe for more sites. And watch out for the scooters, they are everywhere, buzzing by you like energetic bees. .
#paris #scenesofparis #walkalongtheseine #louvremuseum #theleftbank #chandelier #sennelier #rudolfnureyev #agreathat #windowshopping #gospeldream #gospelchoir #saintgermaindespres

Pure joy. What are the chances of wandering around Paris and stumbling into a gospel concert? Well, pretty good if you’re me. I swear if I am within 100 miles of a gospel concert it will find me. Oh happy day! This was a group sing for the Hallelujah in Michael Row Your Boat Ashore. And if you are in Paris on the 9th of July, they will be there same place same time 8:30 at the Eglise de St Germain des Pres. #eglisestgermaindespres group is the #gospeldream and they are wonderful. Go early as was #sro! @gospel.dream thank you.

Dew in the native grasses this morning at #rancholazaca … preparing to leave home for a few weeks. Exciting but bittersweet … always hard to leave.

Ain’t our first rodeo… rootin’ and tootin’ at the #alisal with supermom-supermodel @amygordonart … #summertime #solvang #alisalrodeo #santaynezvalley

The first of our dahlias coming in, yay! .
#dahlias #rancholazaca #californiacookingandsouthernstyle

Love this card from darlin’ Valley friends, and it got me to thinking. I got an actual letter yesterday, from a lifelong friend with whom i have a lifelong tradition of writing actual letters. I am lucky to have a handful of these friends and they have become even more special as the years pass and technology advances. Nothing against email or texting—staying in touch is what matters. And maintaining our friendships is what matters MOST, however we do it. It is an effort for those of us with active lives and competing priorities, and lately Ive been thinking much about this, and about how I need to do better in keeping up with my friends— because it IS an effort. A joy, too, of course, and as Ive come to appreciate, a necessity in a life of purpose and meaning. Id love to hear your thoughts on this.