Connected

Back when my daddy was alive, we would meet every week for lunch.  We had a designated day (Wednesday) and time (11:30a "to beat the crowds"), which meant that we never really had to speak between lunch dates.  Now, I would occasionally call if I had news to report or questions to ask that couldn't possibly wait until our next lunch, but mostly we would save up our news for our 90 minute face-to-face each week.

This whole weekly lunch thing was dad's idea.  I don't think he really liked talking on the phone, plus he liked the structure - knowing he'd be able to hug my neck every single week - and he liked that he didn't have to remember to plan/set up our meetings.  And frankly, I liked it too.  Everyone at my office knew not to schedule lunch meetings on Wednesdays because I was guaranteed to be gone.

My dad did this same setup with my Aunt Susie (his big sister).  Their designated day was Friday.  Same thing.  11:30am to beat the crowds. 

My weekly lunch dates with dad went on for something like 8 years.  The week he died, I saw him for our regularly scheduled Wednesday lunch, and he was gone the following Friday morning.  I have always loved that I saw him that Wednesday.  In fact, I got all sentimental at that final lunch and thanked him for everything he'd done for me (as if I'd somehow KNOWN this was my last chance to talk to him alive).

Two weeks after he died, I called my Aunt Susie and told her WE should start doing weekly lunches.  That was in 2005.  We're still meeting every week.  Every Monday you will find us at a restaurant halfway between her office and my home.  We rarely talk in-between.  We save up our news for Monday.

So this past Monday night, my brother called out of the blue and asked if I could meet him for a cocktail.  Dave put the kids to bed while I dashed off to spend the evening with Russ.  We sat on a bar stool and visited for two hours.  And at the end of the evening, Russ said "we should do this every Monday night!"

yes. i know my brother is very handsome. and single!

And of course I agreed.  Because in my family, it seems a weekly scheduled date is the way we stay connected.  

Do you do this?  Weekly pre-planned meetings or phone calls? How do you keep in touch with your loved ones?