Days of remembering, honoring, recalling and savoring are often hard to come by. For whatever reason, it seems we don’t get many chances to spend such time with loved ones and old friends.

The day began early – with mass in the church at 8 a.m. It was a small group of dedicated parishioners – and me. Afterward, we walked down the street to a cafe for breakfast before readying ourselves for a trip out on San Francisco Bay. But first, a stop at the local Walgreen’s to have them make some VHS transfers to DVD. Fr. Bill had two old VHS tapes from days gone by that I had videoed and given him years ago. One was of his last celebration at our parish in Wallingford; the other of his last Easter Vigil at OLG. He confided that he had never seen either of them and now all the electronics have changed, so the tapes needed to be changed. Thankfully, Walgreen’s provides such a service – for a fee, of course.

Because the Warrior’s victory parade was today through the streets of Oakland, we decided to drive down the road an hour and spend some time in the sun at the coastal community of Tiburon, ultimately taking the ferry from there over to San Francisco. After a little stop at a coffee shop on the shoreline, we did just that. It was a beautiful day and the ferry ride could not have been more restful and invigorating; both at the same time. We sailed past Angel Island, and Alcatraz before docking at the San Francisco Wharf. In an earlier time, we would have all loved to go walking in the streets of San Francisco for an hour or two until the next ferry, but these days we were all happy to simply turn around and get on the very next return ferry. The lovely ride, the beautiful scenery and the brisk ocean air were all the entertainment we needed.

By the time we returned to Oakland, it was 5:30 and we were famished. So we parked at a California Pizza Kitchen and had a most delicious meal, reviving our energy and our spirits. My dear driver received a free dessert to celebrate his birthday and we went back to the Parish House full, happy and satisfied with a day of conversation; coffee; ferries; sun; sights; and sea air.

Every day has it’s grace, but this one was particularly special. Loving and committed husbands are rare and old friends are hard to come by. I got to spend today with both, awash in memories against the backdrop of the San Francisco Bay.