Doughnuts and Destiny

It's interesting to me that sometimes the smallest of decisions or actions can become major events. On a mid-October day two years ago, Trent and I were out running various errands when Trent told me that he would like to get a few doughnuts from the nearby Krispy Kreme. I agreed that it would be a good last stop on our list of places to go. I had sort of assumed that he would go through the drive-through, but he said that he'd rather go in and see what was available, so we headed into the garden of glazed delights.

When we walked in, I noticed a couple with two adorable little girls, and the mother was wearing a Disney Halloween t-shirt. Now, this was a happy coincidence because I was wearing my purple Hocus Pocus Halloween t-shirt. Trent said something, and we were all courteous to one another, and the little girls were entranced when they caught sight of my Pandora charm bracelet. After everyone had purchased their snacks, we walked by their table on our way out. I stopped and asked if the girls wanted to take a closer look at my bracelet. Before we knew it, we had been talking for at least twenty minutes. Disney has a way of doing that to people. 

We exchanged contact information and they said they'd love to see Hocus Pocus with us. They needed to go pick up their other children from school, and we headed home talking about what a nice young couple they were, especially to be so friendly with a couple at least twenty years older than they were. We really felt drawn to them, and decided to contact them and see if they really meant it when they said they would love to have us over. Within days, we were headed over to their house for a pizza and movie night. As we sat around eating and getting ready to watch the movie, I looked at the twins' older sister and thought, "This little girl is going to be my friend." And when I talked back to the movie and the boys repeated what I said, I knew we were all meant to be friends.

We would come over to their home and have fun with everyone of every age. On one occasion when we were all in their car going to the local shopping center (to go to the Disney store, naturally) one of the twins asked their parents if the cousins were going to stay overnight and sleep in the basement, where there was a little apartment. I thought they were talking about some relatives that were coming over, but they were actually talking about Trent and The Lunatic! Over time, the twins kept referring to us as The Cousins, so that became our title. 

We did become friends with all of the kids as well as the parents. The little girl who had sat near me during the movie did become my friend. Any time we rode in the car with them, I sat next to my Lucy, and in front of Noelle and Natalia. Lucy is the only person in my memory that I have felt comfortable with looking through my purse. It is something she started early in our relationship, and I often got in the car and handed my purse directly to her. Everyone knew that if needed, Katrina could be counted on to have mints and at least one band-aid. Lucy almost always remembered that she was in need of a bandage when she looked through my bag, and I shared them with joy.

When The Plague, as The Lunatic calls it, fully knowing the difference, hit, Trent and I knew it would cause problems with our upcoming move. Imagine our pleasure and surprise when we were offered the chance to live in the basement apartment for a couple of months until the world got slightly closer to normal. What a relief it was to know that we had a place to stay, and a family to mingle with! I was reminiscing just today about how helpful the boys were. If we were moving something from our old apartment to our temporary one, Gabe and Eli were right there to help carry things in and down the stairs. The same with groceries or other shopping. I remember one occasion when four-year-old Noelle helped with the toting of the groceries. She slung a bag that contained a two liter bottle over her shoulder and walked in front of me toward the house. When I asked if she needed help, she gave me a confident but polite no, thank you.

We had lived with the family for a while when we learned that from the very first day that we met them in the Krispy Kreme, the twins had begun calling us The Cousins. From the very start, they decided that we were a part of their family. This ended up feeling true. We've been through a lot together, learning to know one another, moving apart, and even loss. When the twins said that they wished they could give us hugs, I got on the internet and ordered them matching pillows. On one side, Trent was sitting with Natalia on his birthday, and the other side was me with Noelle (and Trent) on my birthday. The twins can now hug us any time they want. Who knows, maybe one day I'll be able to ring the doorbell and surprise them all with a hug in person.

We do all sorts of things at all sorts of times. Sometimes they're routine, sometimes eventful. And sometimes destiny shows up disguised by a doughnut. May all your surprises be sweet.

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