Two weeks until we leave with Trc and her family for holiday. I think the only reason I am looking forward to it is because I know Krl and the rest of the crew are. Probably the biggest hurdle is the fact that I am on a completely opposite clock from the rest of the crew. I love to wake early and retire early as well. The rest of the crew prefers to sleep until noon and cat around until late. I caught a bit of a conversation between Krl and Trc and Trc was telling Krl that she hoped I would do more this trip than I did on the last one. I sat on this tidbit of information for a couple of weeks and finally I confronted Krl and told her I had one thing to say about it. It is my vacation too, and I will do what I want to do. So there!

Last time we were at the Paradisus, I would wake up about five or five-thirty, grab a book and sit on the beach as the sun peeked over the horizon. It is a magical time, the lights along the sea wall provide enough light to read until the sun takes over. I know, it doesn't do much for my tan. Rapidly the surroundings come alive. Wait staff and cooks are busy readying the restaurants for the morning rush to come. A few guests of the hotel are busy scurrying about as they rush to meet boats for fishing excursions or other day activities. I finally migrate to the grass roof building that houses the largest and busiest restaurant (they have five), I sit down and a waiter will recognize the guest bracelet I am wearing and rush by with a coffee pot which I wave off and request a Coca-Cola Lite instead. I open my book and read as chefs begin to bring large steaming trays of eggs, bacon, sausages, toast, and hotcakes to the buffet.

Good book, good food. This might be heaven.

After another trip to the beach and a couple hours more of reading I go back and check to see if any of the "group" is stirring. I'm ready for a nap when they are just getting ready to begin their day.

Probably my favorite time of the day is the afternoon squall shower. It seems like it rains every day at the same time. It is a brief reprieve before the heat converts it to a hot steamy sauna.

The first indication that this is not heaven is when Brently begins looking for a Dr. Pepper. Last time when he finally found one, he bought a six pack that cost him over twenty bucks! That's over four dollars a can! We have been joking that maybe we should ship a couple of cases of Diet Coke and Dr. Pepper ahead to be held at the check in desk of the hotel pending our arrival. It might work.

I received a call yesterday from Memama. She was reporting that a cousin's husband had succumbed to injuries he received about ten days ago. His name was Mike Meler and he was married to Nita, their home is in Colleyville. It seems Mike had been driving home from work when he had trouble with his truck, he coasted off the freeway, off the exit ramp, and off the service road. I am not sure, but knowing him I would say he was working on his truck to get it going when another vehicle struck his truck from behind. His neck was broken and he suffered spinal injuries severe enough that doctors told the family he would be paralyzed from the waist down. Saturday night he succumbed to his injuries. He was sixty-one or sixty-two.

Last year at the family reunion golf scramble, I played in a foursome made up of Jack Allen, Michael Joe, Mike and myself. Mike and I shared a cart. In addition, we shared a morning filled with conversation about a wide variety of subjects. Neither of us were gifted golfers, but that didn't stop us. We laughed and joked, bragged on our lucky shots, and cajoled others on their errant ones. We didn't win, and more importantly we didn't care. We were there for the fun and fellowship. And that's how I think I want to remember Mike.

The Memorial weekend races proved to be racy! I think it was one of the better Indy 500's in years and the Coca-Cola 600 was pretty action packed. The favorite came from behind to win Indy while the favorite was demoted to runner-up at Charlotte.

Today is a blank page. Krl's pool is crystal clear and ready. Nearly all of the little odds and ends are completed. The only thing we need to do is get our ice cream freezer canister back from Trc. The grill is at the ready. Hot dogs? 'Burgers? Barbecue? Who knows? We will just go with the flow, see who shows and adjust the program as we need to.

Be the real deal!

FATHER, open my heart.