Nothing Like a Good Hug!

I'm still basking in the light of my birthday weekend with my sister June and daughters Julie (pictured here) and Erin. I said good-bye to Julie who lives in Ohio and though it was time for her to return to her family, I felt a loss. At one time not so long ago, I was the 'family' to whom she returned after being away. But now she has a husband and five children of her own and she must look forward, not backward. And so her hugs are of special significance to me. They don't last long in the flesh but they can last for a very long time in one's memory--a sign of a deep loved shared and a moment of intimacy experienced that transcends words. Environmentalists (of which I am one) suggest we hug a tree. I have done that on many an occasion--but there is nothing like the hug of a daughter you love and miss every day.