La vie n'est pas un long fleuve tranquille... Life is not a long, quiet river.
Life has been getting in the way lately, cher Blog, and I have neglected you. I miss you, and I am looking forward to spending more time with you over the next few months.Happy to be back in front of the keyboard... Tonight I stole a few minutes out of a busy schedule to say: "Je suis toujours là!" - I am still here, or, as Elton would put it, "I am still standing, better than I ever did..."
I am kind of a big deal, you know!
I am still standing, but there have been days lately when I have thought...
I am fortunate to have amazing friends. When the going gets tough, they circle the wagons...
... Because sometimes, all a girl needs to hear is...
On a warm and sunny spring day, a favorite lady of mine invited me over for brunch.
I have a confession to make: My heroes have always been cowgirls.
I have another confession: As a young teenager growing up in France, I dreamed of living on a ranch, somewhere in the great American wilderness. I could just picture the life of my alter-ego: working with horses, surrounded by a pack of dogs (and rugged and handsome ranch hands,) riding off into the sunset on a beautiful chestnut stallion...
I gave up on that dream a long time ago. I never even learned to ride horses properly. Then one day, I met a strong, independent-minded lady who had once decided to become a cowgirl and had turned into one... And what an interesting cowgirl she was - and still is! An animal lover. A francophile. A lover of fine things. She came to me as a French student, and we became fast friends.
Her mantra?
And so on a glorious Sunday afternoon a few days ago, I visited my friend the cowgirl "at the ranch..."
She prepared a Western brunch (or, as I like to call it, fancy cowgirl food,) and set a lovely table just for the two of us...
Meanwhile, one of the cowgirl's furry friends relaxed in the sun at our feet...
The most recent rescue and beloved "bébé:"
Bisou, the English bulldog
Because in the cowgirl's house, all animals are welcomed, loved, and sheltered.
Horses, goats, dogs and cats... They all have a place in the pack and in her heart. They live as a big, happy family. And when one sad day they cross the Rainbow Bridge, the cowgirl says "so long," and she finds a special place for her cherished friends...
St Francis of Assisi, Patron Saint of animals, watches over departed friends
The awesome Biggie, the Great Pyrenees
Miss Piggy, who was a pot-bellied pig but never knew it...
And in these beautiful surroundings, laughing with the cowgirl and playing with her animals, this French Girl forgot she had been a little down lately, and for a few special hours, believed she had finally turned into a horse whisperer...
Playing with Bisou and her big brother, Casanova the Doberman
She felt at peace... and happy. She knew that in that unique home, with her special friend, she would always have a place to stay, and a place to regroup.
funnycrazyweird.com
And she considers herself pretty darn lucky.
A bientôt.
Merci Anne Taintor for your sarcastic and hilarious not-so-perfect-housewives.
Merci iPhone, for taking most of these photos. You, the cowgirl and I did our best.
Merci, mon amie. Merci, all my other girls. You know who you are.
-- French Girl in Seattle
