January 10, 1982
Dear Celeste, Barb and Mog,
I am one of the few people who can type illegibly! I always think of you all-and most of all at Christmas time and Barb's Christmas bush. I don't know if anyone thought to take a picture of ours with all the excitement, but if you walked around with your head cocked at a 45- degree angle, it wasn't too bad!
It sounds like you had a busy and happy Christmas-how nice Ruth and Fred could be there! And snow too, ours was HOT! This year our winter weather has been like anyone else's summer weather which makes me wonder what's in store for us in a few months' time. But it was perfect for sightseeing with Mom and Dad and Fred. Dad, for the first time got a back-alley tour of Bahrain. Expertly guided by Peter-Peter must have taken him to the souk every day, several times a day, he loved it so. He's a different person now that he's retired. Mother is doing quite well, walking by herself. If she's up too long, her ankle begins to swell and for the first time, I became acutely aware of all the rubble around Bahrain-and how to steer her around it! Fred did the almost impossible and managed to find an unattached young lady who was staying down the street with the American Ambassador's family. I don't know how he does it but he always lands on his feet!
Bahrain looked better this Christmas than it ever has. After the Amir's 20th year celebration of being on the throne (and the near-coup dust settled) the red and white Eid lights stayed on through the holidays. And they were everywhere-even the water towers looked like plum puddings. I can't say that any of the decorations were particularly attractive, only marvelous! That and the fact we had family and it was Friday and stores were actually closed, really made it seem like the real thing this year!
I marvel at your connections at Chemical Bank and the fact you have been able to slip such wonderful things in the pouch for the children! What a knack you all have for finding things they will love. Janet is definitely her father's daughter with her nose in a book most of the time. I'm afraid our summer suitcase full didn't last very long so she was delighted with her new reading material and such fine books. The selection in Bahrain is very limited, I'm afraid. I was tickled with John's Jokes and Riddles book-he's very "into" that now and has spent hours memorizing them to tell his friends. Heaven only knows what he'll be like when you see him next. He's fascinated with the "Legendary Animals" book. He has it quite often during a quiet moment. He reads beautifully but cannot write to save his life-something wild happens between head and hand. His teacher is very rigid about writing and I suspect that is part of the problem. The English school system certainly whipped Janet's handwriting into shape but her brother has put on the skids and decided to present them with their greatest challenge to date!
There was a bit of drama and a trip to the hospital Christmas day when Dad woke up with what we have come to call "mashed potato elbow." I had asked him to do just that the day before and on Christmas he had a lump the size of a peach. Not at all painful and it had gone down considerably by the time they left. Of course it required another trip to the souk to purchase an Arab gutra to use as a sling. I had one but it was a plain white one and there was nothing for it; we had to get the red and white checked variety-gosh he's getting funny! We kept up a pretty wild pace through the 26th when they literally got up from the dinner table during a party we had for them and off we went to the airport.
So the dust has settled and Janet and John are back at school-which means I am busy again with the archaeology school program. Most mornings I'm off to the desert with my merry band of children, after having lectured on the rudiments of dig-site courtesy. For the most part, they are very well behaved and I haven't had a hysterical archaeologist yet! There are some interesting things going on and some unexplained findings such as earth foundations in graves where there is only sand around for miles. Most of the graves were robbed in early Islamic times but every now and then some curious things are uncovered. The children, of course, like the skeletons best of all-and they fortunately turn up pretty regularly. Some of the graves go back as far as 4,000 years. The causeway to Saudi will destroy many of them so there is a race to get a fairly large area excavated.
Must go and put dinner on the table-school night! I should also hand a Brillo pad to John and get him to start scrubbing. There is a pack of seven-year-old boys (wonderful for him) and they unfailingly arrive home at dusk in a pretty unbelievable condition.
Happy New Year! So sorry it has taken me this long to write! Miss you!
lots of love, Carol
February 23, 1982
Dear Nancy and Jack,
I've addressed this card to both of you-considering the years involved, 1 figured Jack wouldn't mind sharing! Have a happy birthday Jack-wish we could help celebrate-or at least help Nancy out in the kitchen lighting all those candles!
Nancy, the only question I can answer for sure is that Janet's 10th birthday was a great success. She's so grown up-I feel like we now have three adults in the house!
We will be back in the summer (wouldn't you like to come see our house??!!) but I don't know when... it may depend on where we will be living next year. You may have read in the paper Chemical Bank is cheerfully reorganizing itself which means decisions such as where the Blybergs will go after Bahrain will have to wait until the basic structure is in place. The timing is almost right! Peter, however, is very busy. The branch is expanding at a brisk pace (people and business) and we have had a number of visitors to entertain. Peter is still travelling quite a lot. Mostly Saudi and Emirates but will be going to London next week.
Mostly I'm looking forward to the children's Easter vacation when we will be going to Morocco and Spain-reservations all made-at least in Morocco. Spain is partly business as Peter will be attending a conference in Seville. We have been going pretty much nonstop night and day all winter and look forward to a break!
I'm still extremely busy with the Archaeology school program-which turns out to be good for my drawing since it gets me out to all sorts of places. I'm also organizing a community art show, May 22nd. Still comfortably in the future. It's going to be in an old Bahraini house with an enormous windtower-currently a restaurant.
We may be missing the snow but we have certainly had rain-torrents of it. Bahrain has been described as the Venice of the Middle East. Our house was surrounded by at least 10 inches of water for days-now it's just miles of muck! (You should see John after he's been out playing!)
Miss you both! (The enclosed is for Nancy, who will probably find a good place for it-)
Love,
Carol, Peter, J & J
May 1, 1982
Dear Mom,
Happy Mothers' Day! You sure are in some neighborhood-what with smuggling and Key West seceding from the nation-makes our part of the world seem tame!
Hope you had a nice Easter with Fred. The Easter Bunny did, in fact, find the children in Morocco. Janet didn't think he would-and, until Easter A.M. suffered from a real old fashioned case of vapors-all of which miraculously disappeared when she discovered an Easter basket and various presents!
The children really loved this trip-Janet liked Spain and John was crazy about Morocco. Getting there required some patient-Bahrain, Amman, Madrid, Casablanca. In Casa we rented a car and headed for Marrakesh. Finally out of the city limits and well on our way, we encountered a road blockade (we never found out why) so we rerouted ourselves on some backcountry roads-which required driving back to Casablanca but also through a charming town on the way called El Jadida-which we wouldn't have seen otherwise! Driving is easy, other than animals and shepherds, there are very few people on the road. At one point we stopped to let the children stretch their legs and gather wildflowers (fields ofthem!)-miles of rolling hills and the most intense quiet I have ever experienced. A beautiful country. Rural life probably hasn't changed in the last 500 years! We stayed at the Mamounia in Marrakesh which his something else. Gorgeous-full of beautiful people, swishing and jangling and each with a tiny hairy dog under one arm. J and J loved the pool and gardens. We were able to see many of the sights by horse and carriage and enjoyed the souk but towards the end, were slowed down by a deluge of rain. It made our drive to Fez interesting as some of the roads were all but washed out. It's a beautiful trip-driving alongside the Atlas Mountains. We had ordered extra rolls, fruit and cheese at breakfast and so had a lovely picnic on the way. Some 60 kilometers from Fez-in the mountings, we encountered some young men selling spectacular minerals by the side of the road. We bought Janet a beautiful selection for a song and then they proceeded to pile extra samples into our hands.* Later, when her teacher saw them, he was absolutely aghast saying some of the samples would cost 20 pounds or more in the U.K. Janet was thrilled to say the least! As a parting present, the young men thrust a lovely chunk of lapis in my hands.
Although the language is French, we found our little bit of Arabic produced more smiles and cooperation. Moroccans are not hardened to tourists either and are extremely pleasant. John loved the food-in fact I don't think I have ever seen him eat so much. In Fez, we had a delightful guide (a necessity!) named Idriss who nicknamed John "Mr. Couscous" because he ate so much of it.
We all loved Fez. I know I have never been to a more beautiful city. It's ringed with hills and ruins and the farm fields reach down to meet the ancient city walls. The Medina is an endless maze of twisting alleys with beautiful doors, plaster work and tiles. Even Peter, with his uncanny sense of directions, couldn't untangle this puzzling place-hence Idriss. John adored him and attached himself like a magnet.
We stayed in the old restored part of the Palais Jamais which was gorgeous. Our rooms had lovely old beams and most of the original tiles were still on the floors and walls. Those they had replaced were extremely well matched. From the Palais, we could look out over the Medina and to the hills and farms beyond-orange blossoms everywhere!
We hated to leave-left in pouring rain however, drive to Casablanca (we really saw a lot of countryside!) where we got our flight to Madrid. The following day we got our flight to Seville where we met up with the Chemical Bankers. There is actually a great deal to tell at this point, but think I'll save it for later. These people were in treasury so many of them were new to us-they came from all over-the Middle East, New York and Europe. We were glad we could organize our Rand R to meet them. We stayed in an old Moorish fort in Carmona - about a 30- minute drive to Seville. Unfortunately the Chemical Bankers experienced some pretty grey drizzly days. We stayed on after they left and had some gorgeous days. Saw some pretty spectacular Flamenco!
We really enjoyed Seville after the skies cleared and drove on to Granada to see the Al Hamra. That too, is a beautiful drive-we found a country restaurant along the way and had one of the best lunches I've ever eaten! The Al Hamra is beautiful-a palace of lace. Janet adored it. We saw it both in the morning and in the afternoon-both kinds of light were lovely and completely different.
From Granada, we drove back to Seville and flew back to Madrid where we spent the night and had time to visit the Prado (too short!-What a wonderful museum) before catching an afternoon flight to Frankfurt, Rome and finally Bahrain. Three days later I had unpacked and produced a birthday party for John! Thank you for his birthday check-he's purchased an electronic game and has turned out to be a real whiz kid. He had a wonderful birthday-the kids all wore costumes and looked adorable-he was a Moroccan, "Mr. Couscous." Of course!
I came back to find my poster advertising the fashion show of traditional Bahraini clothing plastered all over town-kind of fun and Peter has already been to Saudi and back. It's all too easy to pick up the threads!
Miss you! Happy Mothers' Day!
Much Love, Carol
THE MOTHERS AND CHILDREN'S WELFARE SOCIETY
AND
THE AMERICAN WOMEN'S AUXILARY
present
"ZERI"
A program of traditional fashions
Monday May 3, 1982
Awai Ballroom Gulf Hotel
The Mothers and Children's Welfare Society
and the American Women's Auxiliary would like to express their appreciation to the following
for invaluable help given towards the production of this program.
Ministry of Information State of Bahrain
Directorate of Antiquities Government Printing Press Bahrain Radio and Television
The Management and Staff of the Gulf Hotel
Members of the Mothers and Children's Welfare Society for the loan of garments and jewelry used in the show
Modern Graphics
Bahrain International School posters and programs printed at the
Ministry of Information from an original design by Carol Blyberg
"ZERI"
cloak of handwoven wool (bishet darbooyeh)
robe of patterned silk (thobe nashil mdowsi)
2. cloak embroidered with red silk (deffa bukhia hamra)
sheer silk robe (thobe buwarda)
3. cloak re-embroidered with black silk (deffa bukhia sooda)
tulle robe with gold filaments (thobe tulle nuqde)
4. cloak with gold embroidery (deffa bukhia zeri fiha assemech)
silk embroidered robe (thobe nashil)
5. handwoven silk robe (thobe jez) dress (dara'a)
slippers (medas)
6. multicolored silk robe (thobe mfaha) dress and trousers (dara'a and serwal)
7. robe with gold filament embroidery (thobe nuqde)
dress (dara'a)
8. robe with repeated gold embroidery thobe mfarakh)
dress (dara'a)
9. headscarves and dresses (bokhnaq and dara'a) singing "hiya biya"
10. headscarf and robe (bokhnaq and thobe) dress (dara'a)
11. white voile robe (thobe yaqa abiyath) long skirt (shimlul)
blouse (meqsr)
12. red and yellow cotton robe (thobe cheet) dress (dara'a)
13. silk head scarf (shaal zeri)
dress and trousers with tassels (dara'a and serwal with kurkush)
14. voile scarf (mushmar)
robe, dress, and trousers with tassels (thobe, dara'a, and serwal with kurkush)
15. headscarves, dresses, and trousers (bokhnaq, dara'a, and serwal)
16. robes with a repeated gold design (thobe mfarakh)
dresses (dara'a)
17. robes trimmed with gold coins (thobe thuraya) dresses (dara'a)
18. robe with gold embroidery (thobe nashil) dress (dara'a)
19. robe with colored silk embroidery (thobe bresaam)
dress (dara'a)
20. white embroidered cloak (bishet abiyath fiha assemech)
gold embroidered veil (milfa nuqde) robe (thobe nashil)
dress (dara'a)
FINALE
please note: the above is the briefest of descriptions of each ensemble. An additional glossary is given on the following pages for some of the jewelry exhibited, but it is by no means a complete list of all the many different varieties of jewelry.
"Zeri" is the gold or silver embroidery that adorns most traditional and modern garments.
"Meshmum," the fragrant leaves of the sweet basil plant, are used frequently in garlands and for adorning the hair. The leaves may be
combined with the double jasmin flower, "raasge," the ordinary jasmin, "yasmin," or with rosebuds, "warde."
Sprigs of "meshmum" have been placed on the tables, as well as a sample of the henna used
to decorate hands and feet at festive occasions.
A brief glossary of jewelry terms
Necklaces
marieh (pl. marare): a long necklace made of oval hollow beads
murtehesh: a very large necklace made up of small circular links
gerdale: a short necklace with cylindrical pendants
jenzeel: a long heavy necklace which has a square amulet to hold Koranic verses
murta' asha: a short necklace, composed of many chains with pendant designs hanging from a choker
menthoora: a choker necklace similar to above, with many small pendants
and many other types
Hair Ornaments
gub: a round flat ornament worn on the top of the head
talaat: pendants that hang on either side of the face
chiteb: pendants fixed in the back of the hair meshmum al qissa: pendant ornaments combined
with leaves of the sweet basil
to hang at side of face
thaase: round ornament shaped like a ball gharameel: round pendants fixed in the hair serarih: long ornaments fixed in the hair hilal: crescent-shaped hair ornaments
Bracelets
asaawer: general term for bracelet
heb al hail: named for design which resembles the cardamom seed
mudha'ed: narrow bracelets worn in groups
bangiri: another type of narrow bracelet swairaat: lit. "dolls" referring to large
projections on bracelet; there are many other names of bracelets not included here
Earrings
sheghaab: long earrings tarachi: large round earrings
sabah al kheir: lit. "good morning"
ghalaamiyat: long pendant earrings
several types of earrings are not mentioned
Rings
khewatem: general term for rings: there are special words for the finger rings
of certain design, or for certain fingers
Belt khazam
Ankle Bracelets heyul
Traditional Embroidery
There are two main types of embroidery techniques used in these garments. One, called "bukhia" is a chain stitch. The other, which is known as "tedhreez lef," is like a satin stitch. Frequently a thobe or other garment will have its embroidery in a traditional design, such as the bride's cloak "deffa bukhia zeri fiha assemech." Translated, this means the cloak (deffa) with gold chain stitch embroidery (bukhia zeri) with a fish (in Bahraini Arabic the word for fish is "semech;" in classical Arabic, "samak.")
Other techniques include:
"nuqde" the use of gold filaments "bresaam" bukhia embroidery in colored
silk as well as gold thread
"mfarakh" "bukhia" embroidery in a repeated design
"nashil" "bukhia" embroidery in broad bands from shoulder to hem
June 1, 1982
Dear Mom and Dad,
I feel very badly for not writing and could probably come up with at least three type written pages. Why I haven't gotten around to it! I've thought of you so much on your beautiful trip and loved hearing from you on my birthday! We had a multi-purpose celebration which included a fare-well for our friends Vera and Stefan Kemball and Shelby-whose birthday is the day before mine. The Sutherlands and Seznecs were also part of the party and all things considered, it was a riotous evening with everyone in black tie. We were certainly ready for it as we had all been snowed under with one thing or another. Shelby had just finished "Zeri" - (I'm enclosing the program with my design.) Carol and Peter had had a wild round of diplomatic visitors, Vera and Stefan in the throes of a move and Thackray and Jean-Francois had just shipped a psychotic maid off to Seychelles the night before (that's a story in itself!). It was the best party we've ever had.
Shortly afterward, we had a group of visiting bankers. Peter organized a dhow trip (back to the Qatar sand bar!) which was gorgeous and about the only day I've taken off all month I've been so busy with the Art Show. I really thought we might have to cancel it because of the Shamal-record winds and sand blowing over from Saudi. For days the air was thick and you couldn't even see where you were going walking through the Souk. The day of the dhow trip was sunny and unbelievably calm so off we went. It was even more enjoyable them usual because a school of porpoises followed us right alongside our boat. And ugh, it's also sea snake season. No one swam out very far and we all stuck together. We had a delicious picnic and the children scurried around collecting cuttlefish bones for the various birds we constantly seem to be acquiring (the latest a geriatric parakeet we've dubbed "Bombs-away-Beakie" as he collects small shells from a basket in the kitchen and drops them on us.)
The Art Show was very successful--especially in terms of establishing a good relationship with a number of Bahraini artists and the Ministry of Information-the whole idea was to get these two groups together! They loved it and we had excellent press coverage, record attendance, approx. 25 exhibitors and 150 works of art-nearly all for sale. The artists were happy because a number of things sold plus some commissions (I sold two, one a very large pastel and watercolor. It was very different and the first time I've worked with those mediums.). The exhibition was held in a place called The Windtower Restaurant-formally a Bahraini home and it possesses a truly classical windtower, or bad gir. The Bahrainis loved it-this was an exhibition on their territory. Safia Kanoo told me that when she was a child, she used to visit the family who lived there. The only hitch is that two weeks before the event, the owner hired an extremely objectionable lesbian as her manager. Trouble started the morning of the exhibition when she became really quite abusive-no need to go into the gory details but I think when she realized how special this really was, she wanted a bigger cut and credit for herself. I decided very quickly that there is no way to communicate with someone like that and turned the matter over to a Bahraini law firm-they've concluded all relationships between the Windtower and the AWA. I think my move took them by surprise because I haven't heard a word since. Too bad because we really transformed the place with good lighting, plants from "Up A Tree" and some really gorgeous crafts as well. We managed to point up all the best architectural features of the place (artwork hanging in the courtyard) and you could hear people ooh and ah as they walked in. It really was beautiful. I will say that technically, I have learned a tremendous amount. We made a good friend too-one of the Bahraini artists, Rahim Sharif (family originally from Shiraz). He's exhibited in New York and Paris and has just recently returned to Bahrain. When I sold two of my paintings, we bought one of his. Beautiful fresh colors, it's a Bahraini Bride.
After all that, life has slowed down to a crawl with Janet and John both home with Mono-or glandular fever. As you know, it takes some time to get over it. Younger children don't usually get it as severely as teenagers and in fact, as lousy as they feel, they don't feel badly enough to stay in bed. They play quietly together a lot (too tired to fight) and Janet appears to be bouncing back-with luck, I may be able to send her back to school next week. John is more difficult, some days he bounces around and others not. Like today, weepy and can hardly sit up straight. I have no idea how they got it, it started with headache, nausea and a sore throat. They do have a good Doctor, a new-comer to Bahrain from Australia. So, lately my days are spent going back and forth to do the blood tests, keeping a supply of videos in the house, pipe cleaners, construction paper and magic markers etc.-and, of course, Jello making. They, in turn, have been excellent little patients and seldom complain.
Peter had a productive trip to New York. He went for a planning session for the Middle East Territory and also to talk about some jobs in other areas of the bank-too premature to mention right now but it looks like we could be leaving in November. In the meantime, the goals he had when we first arrived, are finally being realized along with total support in New York.
Never thought we'd see the day. Next week he's off to London and after that, Ramadan starts and as dull as that is, at least he' II have to stick around.
I had an interesting telephone call this week from a man named Gerald Green who has been living in Austin and has met Ellen Ross Carter (who suggested he call the Blybergs in Bahrain). The watered-down description of his job is that he is in Austin to babysit Sh. Ali (son of H. H.) while he goes to The University. British, has been in Bahrain some 26 years-most of the time connected to the Amiri Court. Witty conversationalist, a typical hanger-on-we'll probably meet him in person at some point. Loves Austin but doesn't want to admit it to Sh. Isa. Funny how people keep meeting each other all over the world.
We received our new Texaco credit cards in the mail the other day. My unbiased and totally objective opinion is that they are a little kinky looking.
After wrestling with myself, I've decided to leave out the Seznec saga of the psychotic maid as you may have already decided that this is just a piece of fiction. I'll let you know how the children progress-a few quiet weeks should be in store for us at this point.
Miss you and can't wait to see you. The house in Maine has been opened in case you need it before we get there.
Lots of love, Carol
July 14, 1982
Dear Nancy and Jack,
Thank you for your long and newsy letter-if you can believe it this is Janet's and John's last day of school and Sunday we will leave for London (to cool off and visit some friends!) and will arrive in Boston the 21st-and on up to Maine where plans begin to get a bit vague.
Obviously we'll get to Connecticut at some point. I have to admit, we're ready to go-this being my first entire Ramadan in the Middle East. J and J were two little sad sacks with Mono for quite a while-and travelling back and forth to Saudi for Peter is nothing short of die-hard banking! On the other hand, activities have tapered off to such an extent that we have indulged in reading for pleasure, boat trips out on the gulf (a friend of ours has a Chinese junk) and a series of casual dinner parties-and even then, a Bahraini friend has done all the cooking-a grand character. We met him during the Art Show-an exhibitor. You'd love his work-his oil paintings are so fresh, they sparkle!
You asked about the Art Show-we'll bring pictures of the place which is beautiful. The event was a total success-Minister of Information loved the whole concept. We met any number of Bahraini artist and now the Directorate of Art and Culture has set aside a budget for future Bahraini/ex-pat shows on a regular basis. It was hard work-the only unpleasant part was dealing with the English lady who managed the Windtower restaurant (originally an old Bahraini home) who got very greedy when she saw how successful the evening was-in the end I turned the matter over to a lawyer and it has been resolved-in our favor.
Your Valentine show sounds wonderful-and I am sure, far more professional than mine!
For that matter, your bathroom sounds more interesting than ours-we're lucky if we can get water out of the taps-always annoying and never more so than in the summer! I think the claw footed tub should have a name-something as controversial as its presence!
Before Ramadan (month of fasting-no food or water from sun-up to sun-down) started there was a great flurry of teas with the Shaikas. Very formal (they play havoc with family life as they are between 5:30-7:30-the Oriental teatime) and always a groaning board of Arabic delicacies. The ladies are delightful and I was very flattered one day when a cousin of the Amir's made a circlet of Jasmine for my hair (they sew the blossoms together-sometimes they wear them on their write or around their necks) and then advised me to wear it all day and all night because their scent would last for a long time and drive my husband wild. The delightful part was that she was so matter-of-fact!-and the fact she never took off her veil while constructing this item.
Time to pick up the children-and off for a celebratory lunch and swim! Can't wait to see you this summer.
Maine address:
c/o G. G. Bean
P.O. Box 638
Brunswick, ME 04011
Love, Carol
September 9, 1982
Dear Nancy and Jack,
Thank you for your letter-it came just before we left-what a flurry of activity that was!
We think of you every time we play "Chariots of Fire." (John says it reminds him of driving to Bath-I wonder why??) It reminds me of a very nice dinner-and honestly-I can't thank you enough for taking off and coming up to see us. We just loved it. 1 still chuckle every time I think of popcorn-Kent style.
Peter got his root canal and filling finished and my little friend J.F.B. is now sporting glasses which he says are a tremendous help. I could kick that SOB at Salmaniya Hospital here who said he was "hysterical." Poor old rascal really was seeing double and he's a bit nearsighted. It was a real scramble to get them-we picked his glasses up on the way to the airport. Extra pair in the mail.
We did Paris Byberg-style-i.e. walking from one end of it to the other and stopping every few hundred yards for something to drink-I wish I were a camel! We had gorgeous weather. The 18-year-old daughter of a Chemical couple took Janet and John out for an evening on the town and I must admit, it seemed very strange to think of them--out there somewhere!
They had a wonderful time-singing from one end of the city to the other on the subway dinner and movies.
It's nice to be back, although it is drippy hot. The windows in the house are so fogged up I can't see outside. Freda had everything nicely whipped into shape-which wasn't easy.
Everything that could possibly malfunction this summer-did. I think our landlord even felt badly because he sent over a pile of fresh dates from his garden yesterday. Our friend Rahim breezed into the kitchen and immediately commenced pulling out all my pots and pans to make some strange Arabic dessert out of them. He said it was just enough for four-we could have fed 20! He was pleased to see us, kissing Peter many, many times on both cheeks. He's finished the two paintings we commissioned for the branch-and they are marvelous!
Janet and John started school yesterday-must have been a good beginning because they emerged beaming. They were awfully happy to see all their old friends again but at night, we still have a tear or two of regret at having to leave Maine.
Have included a few things from September's "Down East."
Again, thank you both for coming up and for our beautiful rag rug which has been lovingly put away for next year's reunion. It did look wonderful in front of the fireplace in the dining room!
Miss you both!
Love, Carol