Surprise at Georgetown!

The surprise worked!!

Josh had NO idea that Ez was travelling w/ me to the East Coast. Josh was a bit late meeting at the front gate of Georgetown, while Ez was lingering in the shadows. Then when Josh appeared and he and I hugged, Ez came from behind and tapped Josh on the shoulder. You shud have seen his delight, joy and affection. Josh was totally thrilled and excited.

Coming the week after Sudip came down and Silas surprised him here in DC (commenting that DC appears so much easier to live in than NYC and so much like a European city than an American one...), having Ez come the following week has sent Josh's emotional joy levels to the stratosphere. It was such a joy to see Josh so happy last night. Both of them were entranced to see the other one! Ez has been in hibernation mode and doing it well since July, so being in a city was a bit of a shock for him, as he commented. But then f2f with Josh brought him right back into the family groove and a father cudn't have been happier than I was seeing them together last night. If the purpose of my trip was to reunite my sons again, after their months apart and new life directions, then it was all, all, worth it!!

These, as you know, are the moments we live for...

The three of us took a long stroll around Georgetown before settling in at the Mexican restaurant i'd been to before w/ Josh last year. A full pitcher of margaritas, chips and nachos had us rolling along long before our dinners came later. It was such a pleasure to hear our two young men chatting, discussing, musing on their worlds and the world around us. There was a total delight in sharing each others' company, being together again, and learning what they were studying, who they were hanging with and what they were doing since they were last together in June, a long four months ago.

It makes me want even more to be sure that we are together as a family regularly, even as we live apart. Josh said a few times how much he misses Leah and wants to be back to enjoy part of her childhood. Ez and I had many a conversation about Ms. Leah while we were walking up to Vernal Falls or around Convict Lake in California. Both boys love that sister of theirs, even as we know that they live in different worlds much of the time and that Leah feels that, even when there, they 'don't play with me...'. Still, the bond is powerful, profound and lifelong. What a gift for all of us!

Today, Josh said he'd make us dal bhaat, so I needed to wake Ez up about noon. Of course, he and Josh had a later night together back at Josh's dorm. I was high enough after the margaritas and joy of being together, not to mention the four hours sleep in Reno b/c of the Ezi ID crisis (when we realized he didn't have a picture ID and had to get someone at DSC to scan a copy of his passport to him that night to be able to get through airport security the next morning).

So I walked back to the Holiday Inn on my own. Ez came in sometime in the middle of the night. Plus, he's been working relentlessly at DSC, including 4 am runs to milk the two cows (Ruth and Lilith), so he's exhausted and could use a couple days of 12 hours sleep, methinks. Josh seems more energized, as he's had great visits w/ Silas and Sudip, plus made a commitment to himself to dig in and get good grades here so that he is eligible to go to SOAS in lLndon next year, if that is still what he wants.

Josh also has a bunch of midterm exams next week, as well, so he's working hard to do well on those before, I'm sure, getting ready to relax a bit again. Ez has this week to catch up on his sleep, before returning to more full-time intensity of academic studies, student government and being the 'milk boy' for the next few months (which means daily 4 am strolls in the darkness to milk the cows).

Thursday night, while Josh studied, Ez and I made another visit to the Folger Shakespeare library on Capitol Hill. We saw "Henry the VIIIth", a lesser known Shakespeare play that was first played under a dark cloud, as the cannon that went off during the play burned down the theater. We had no fireworks, but an exquisite play about power. marriage, court intrigue, royal-church relations and the cunning, lustful nature of man. It's such a joy to see real theater!

Then, yesterday, by one of the new bus companies, Megha Bus, I think, where folks of all varieties wait on a green in DC while the buses park disgorge, load and head off back on up the highways. Continuing to enjoy Victor Hugo's "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" while enjoying the autumn colors along the crowded highways north.

To Philadelphia, Mom's birthday and Claudia's family with Josh and Ez...