Friends

Last weekend, I spent yet another fantastic 3 days with some of my most favorite people in all the world. We sang, ate, drank, danced, laughed and listened. On Friday night, we found our seats in a familiar dark corner room at our bar of choice, quizzing each other about state birds and celebrating TWO babies to arrive in November. On Saturday night, we all sat around in a cozy yellow living room and sang great songs and silly songs late into the night. Sunday afternoon, we didn't want it to end and ate slowly at Tokyo and Taipei, sharing pictures and quiet stories. We hugged and waved as we walked out of sight, promising we'd be in touch. That night, a flurry of emails flooded our inboxes as we relived the weekend and started our countdown til January.

For most of us, our reunion happened much sooner than we anticipated...and much sooner than we would have liked. Our friend, the always witty, perfectly sarcastic and compassionate Andrea Coller, died last Wednesday night after a long battle with cancer. I couldn't quite wrap my mind around it when I heard the news--I closed my eyes and heard her voice in my ear, reading her story...and I heard our laughter in gales in response to her straight-forward storytelling. I didn't know Andrea well--but we've been on several writing retreats together now and in that familiar living room in a big yellow house, strong bonds formed even if we didn't talk for 6 months at a time. I consider myself lucky to count Andrea among my friends...but I was also a fan--of her writing, her music, her fashion and her one-of-a-kind personality.

About a year ago, Andrea began an essay on our retreat. I remember laughing so hard my face hurt while falling deeply in love with her writing. She submitted that piece to a contest for Glamour magazine...and out of thousands of entries, hers won. She was surprised. We, her writing companions, were not. The piece embodied brilliance. Last weekend, Andrea talked about how excited she was to see the article in print--and to get the feedback from the judges. Even though the magazine hit the newsstands over a week early, Andrea missed it. So we're celebrating it for (and with) her. Go buy the lovely Glamour with a botoxed Jessica Simpson on the cover. Open it to page 150. Or simply go here:

"I Want My Life Back"
Interview with Andrea

(And for that feedback Andrea wanted to read, you can go here and scroll about 2/3 of the way down to read judge Jennifer Weiner's thoughts on Andrea and the piece. Thanks, Matt.)

Andrea's funeral was on Monday. A group of us from retreat gathered in Northampton on Sunday to be together, remember Andrea and celebrate our friendships. I can't help but think Andrea was smiling down on us as we sang music she loved and splashed around in the hot tub. At the service, I looked to my left and my right and saw people for whom I am especially grateful. They make me laugh, they let me cry, they listen and they accept with open arms and hearts. We're lucky to have each other--and we were lucky to have Andrea. When January finally comes, we'll be popping TicTacs and drinking 007s...and we'll try to be as funny and as honest as she always was.

Enough said, sha la la la la la la la la la...