New Friends

It is a sacred moment when you find a new friend. We have met many special people during these past 8 weeks. Like our host family in Rome- but we knew they were friends before we arrived, thanks to emails. Our time together seemed short, knowing there was a limit to our week.
Yesterday, we found an unexpected friend. I was taking a walk in the town, & saw signs for “Natasha’s Art” and found her cottage/craft store. Her cottage sits on their property- a hobby farm. The craft store is a combination of antiques, wood crafts and soaps. She has a son 8 years old and a daughter 6.
Natasha invited me to bring my children so they could play while I shop. I went back for Brett and the kids.
I was enamored by her. When I told her about our trip, she mentioned that she and her husband had taken a year and a half to travel in their renovated military truck. They drove to Egypt, and spent time in Jordon, Libya and Morroco. “My husband is a very clever man. He planned it all. I was so afraid to go, but now it is like a dream. It was a very important time, living in the Arabic culture. My husband insisted. We are a very good team traveling together.” I can relate, and am grateful my DH aspired to Europe in a car and not Africa in a truck.
She also went to West Africa this past November to help women develop their soap making business. As we are talking, my DD6 has settled into the sandbox with her DD6. The boys, Brett included, played basketball and rode bikes. Her regular customers come and go and we talk on and on.
I offered to bring the children home for lunch. It’s a sweet scene- the 2 girls and 3 boys- playing with bits of German and English and lots of hands and feet. I don’t have a mother’s vocabulary in German. “Would you like some more? Should I take the skin off your potato?” While traveling, I had made some embroidered wallets, I offered one to the little girl 6yo, “This is a ‘gift.’’ She looked worried. German friends will understand that I scared this poor little one- “gift” in German means poison! Brett was quick to find the right words to clarify.
We canceled our sightseeing plans in favor of enjoying our new German friends. Natasha’s husband was at work, but would be returning that evening. She said, “My English is not so good, but he is very good. He will be sad if he does not meet you and I have all the fun today.” We were invited for dinner.
The houses here give the illusion of a residential neighborhood. However, on Fridays, several of the farms open their small businesses- deli, dairy, crafts- and it’s possible to purchase small essentials from their homes. When Natasha closed her shop for the day, she sent the boys to the dairyman for milk and cheese and she and I went to the butcher for deli meats.
Her husband, Andreas is a renewable energy engineer. Their home is a work in progress. They had taken a 200 year old home and from the foundation up, have renovated room by room. He reminds me of my brother.

The evening was beautiful- the first warm evening of spring, we ate outdoors and enjoyed their homemade apple wine. The children played “very peacefully”- riding bikes into the forest as we talked late into the night. Every so often, life is like a dream.