Alone in the Dark

I'm not afraid of the dark anymore. I used to be, but now I kind of like it; there's a certain stillness that accompanies darkness. It can be a great help in re-centering and entering into peacefulness.

But there's still a scary side to the dark. I can still work myself into a panic where I need all the lights in the house on--particularly when my roommate, Jess, isn't home. That's when every creak, every move of the man downstairs or the couple next door, sounds like someone breaking in or someone wandering around inside my apartment. I can't say I look forward to being alone all night long.

So I understand why Sharon asked me to spend this next week with her; Frank left today with his dad to take care of some business in Italy (the poor men). I wouldn't want to be alone in the house, either. And plus, Sharon is now about 5 months pregnant; somehow, that makes the idea of being alone even less attractive. "I would appreciate it... and Frank would appreciate it..." she said. Well, hey, you don't have to twist this arm! I love staying here! In fact, I look forward to spending most of June here before leaving for Kentucky!

One of my classmates, Hope, met Frank and Sharon briefly right before I left for California. She stood inside their house for about five minutes, but raved about them afterward.
"They just seem so at home--with each other, in their house,--they seem like such lovely people: the picture of a happy married couple."
It's so true. They live their vocation with their whole hearts. Just being around them has given me a model to look up to. They give a whole new meaning to the command of Our Lord to "strive for perfection."

Even if it weren't such a treat for me to have "sleepovers" in the home of my dear friends, I don't think there is any request they could make that I could turn down. They are such giving people; I feel as though I could never possibly give as much to them as they give to me. So the giving continues. And so does the friendship.

And so here we are, Sharon in her room, and I in "mine," as we've all started to term the guestroom! And both of us feel strange that Frank isn't around, but both of us also feel safer and happier, knowing the other is under the same roof. Tonight neither of us will be alone in the dark.