Betty's Party

This weekend we also went down to Royal Center. Sunday was our neighbor Betty Smith's 90th birthday party. She was like a second (or is it third?) grandmother to us. She and her husband were always so sweet and loving to us. Anytime we'd go to their house, they'd give us a cookie out of their cookie drawer. They never had children of their own, so I know that "cookie drawer" was made just for us Drexler kids. :-) They were such great people. So, when Mom told me they got an invite for her party, I was soooo excited to know that it was the same weekend as Em's shower, so I could go! We all went to church on Sunday in Goshen, then headed out - Mom, Dad, Em, Jeff, Pete, the kids, and me. Anytime we go back to Royal Center, it brings back all these memories, as I mentioned in my blog about Michelle's shower last weekend. This time it was even more true. We saw so many people that we grew up with. I'm not joking when I say we were practically mobbed when we walked in. Em and Jeff were a little behind us, so we walked in with mom and dad. Betty was so thrilled to see us as were so many of our old friends from back when. Dad walked around and talked with everyone. Mom stayed at the table with Pete, Jeff, and the kids most of the time, just because she's shy about talking to people when it can be hard for people to understand her. But, that didn't matter. Everyone just came to her instead. :-) We were there probably 2 hours or so. Em and I went from table to table talking with everyone we knew. I took pictures, not only for the blog, but for Micah, so I could email them to him. It's been 15 years since we left Royal Center, but the love is still there. The people have aged, but their kindness and smiles are still the same. When it was time to leave, we went said our goodbyes to Betty. She's still so beautiful and doesn't look like she's 90. When you hug her, you can feel her fraility, but I would give anything to look like her at 90. There's just something special about her. She teared up when we all sang Happy Birthday to her. The fellowship hall was filled and I think she realized at that moment just how many people she had touched in her life. I told her later that I hope she felt the love that we all had for her. Even if we can't make it back very often, she's still in our hearts. It was a real honor to be a part of that day for her.