our time in virginia...

...Included visits with friends, a visit to Old Town Alexandria and a visit to see Amma.

There is nothing like old friends.  Whenever we go to Virginia we get to see two families - some of our oldest and dearest friends.  I am so grateful that they both live relatively near each other.  And we stay with them, instead of in hotels, which of course is much more fun.   We share meals together, we relax together, we stay up late talking, we play music.  We laugh and talk about years of memories.

There is nothing like Old Town Alexandria.  It is old but alive, artistic, joyous, beautiful, fun.  I love going there, it is a magical place for me.  I lived there in my twenties, and wrote about it here and here.  I love that I got to live there, when I was a single gal, out of graduate school, a working girl.  I love that I got to live with one of my best friends at the time, who is still one of my best friends.  It was while we lived in Alexandria that I was invited to a party with some med students from Georgetown, and at this party my friend met her husband.  I kinda dragged her there, she wasn't in the mood to go.  She was glad we went! 

We took the kids to see Amma.  She was at a hotel in Virginia.  In fact her programs were held in a huge ballroom where twenty plus years ago I attended a conference on multiple personality disorder.  I was interning as an art therapist in a psychiatric hospital, and my boss was the chairman of the conference. 

It was great to see Amma.  We got to talk with her.  She is always so encouraging of the children.  Over the years the girls have performed music for Amma, and she is always so happy when they do this.  In fact it was Amma who first asked Sky to sing in public.   

There is no one like Amma.  That is for sure.  Sometimes she gives apples when you go up for her darshan.  Sky was thrilled to get her first one.  This summer Amma spoke and laughed with everyone.  She comforted sad people and made administrative decisions about her numerous charities and her hospital and gave people advice, all the while hugging everyone who came to see her until all hours of the night, her one cheek bruised from the constant contact she has with so many people's faces and heads pulled to this one side and, as usual, I was inspired.