Human encounters...

Dinner time on a cruise ship...very interesting...people are interesting.  Cruises are SO diverse...like in every sense.  And at dinner time we experienced alot of diversity..,some of it was wonderful, some not so wonderful.  Some dinners were spent observing and some were spent investing.  I would call myself a people person...but some people...well I'll just let you read;)
Dinner night #1...we were placed at a tiny table in between two other tiny tables, approximately 6 inches away from each other.  The night could be summed up with one word "awkward"... no one broke the ice.  We did not converse with the other tables, yet we could all hear each other's conversations...awkward.  Night #2...we were seated at one large table, again, between two other couples.  I think it helped that we sat at the same big table and not at separate little tables that weren't really separate.  Todd from Michigan broke the ice with a good old "well this is awkward", which was good enough for me to get chatty:)  We talked about this and that and I told them the story about the birth certificates and getting on the ship which inspired Todd and his wife to ask if we were considering adoption (remember the part about how my friend from DCS saved the day?).  So you know his question opened the door for me to tell our story which opened the door for them to tell their story.  Five years ago, they adopted a 7 year old out of the foster care system.  They went on about the blessings and the struggles and we understood each other.  We all love Jesus and adoption...and a friendship was formed on the ship 'Destiny'.  I forget their last name, but I wish I could find them on facebook and be friends forever:)  It was a lovely evening...I liked that table.  Night #3...another tiny table in between tiny tables...why do we always have to be in the middle?  This dinner was rough:(  We sat beside a perplexing couple...the man was probably in his 50's and rather large.  The girl was 20 something and her dress was not covering much.  One would assume she was his daughter, but she was very, VERY rude to him...belittling him in a voice that screamed 'I want everyone to hear how I talk to him'.  She treated the waiter the same way.  She spoke demeaningly, like they were less than her.  I literally felt sick to my stomach...and as I get older, I find it harder to bite my tongue, but I did and I prayed for her three times throughout my dinner.  We left without ordering dessert or even finishing our food.  We couldn't sit there any longer.  I smiled at our waiter on our way out, trying to communicate with my eyes that he was fabulous and that girl is a jerk...I think he may have read me right;)  Night #4...another big table...again in the middle,  This time we were between a family of four from Finland and a couple from Ireland.  The Finnish family was made of 4 beautiful blonde people...the two little girls could have stepped straight out of a magazine:)  They were also very nice.  The Irish couple had been married for over 50 years, they were a lovely couple...full of stories, advice, and encouragement... lovers of Jesus and loved to talk about Him.  Kath (that's what her husband called her) felt like my mamaw.  She touched my arm every time she spoke to me and the way she spoke (apart from the accent) reminded me alot of my mamaw.  They loved looking at pictures of our kids (yes, they're always with me and ready to make an appearance) and telling us stories of their children and grandchildren. We soaked in their words and traded addresses before dinner was through...they may not be on facebook, but they'll be our forever friends the old fashioned way.  I adored the evening we had with them.  That was our last dinner and it ended on a high note.
Overall we had a lovely time.  It was a great way to celebrate 10 years of wedded bliss and how incredibly in love we are.  I'm thankful we made it on board and made it back home.  And I think it may be another 10 years before we leave our kids again...just saying:)
~One very crazy cruisin mama Crook