Greeting from Cath Sutton

Happy 50th Birthday, Karen. You will always be that young girl running on the beach. The one who gets the jewelry. The one who laughs about your peeing accident and finds a way to use that as a teaching tool. You are the one who does a Herculean task so beautifully then worries if you may have perhaps spoken one word that wasn't right. Or, heaven forbid, said something inappropriate. You set a delightful table, make a fabulous orange salmon dish for lunch, but you make the visiting time even better than the meal. You laugh about fart machines, have been known to delight in a bit of trickery, but only in the most appropriate way. You have a way of putting things together that is so charming and warm, so welcoming, so INTERESTING, so lovely. You shine light and help those around you see things to delight in as you do. My Mom said she loved life. I see that in you, and I want to be at that same place. What more can I tell you about yourself, that you deserve to hear on such a day as birthday #50? Karen, thank you for your kind, compassionate, open and generous spirit and for being an incredible listening friend. You are always aware of the other person. You might be too generous, yes, I think today you should let it be about you and go on and be selfishly lavish with yourself, could you, for once? It is wonderful to watch the depth of your passion about everything from philosophical issues to the bad manners of boorish people. And it is delightful to delve into their badness, all the intricacies and depths of those flaws, in hysterically funny and colorful conversations. And oh by the way, your passion is so big that pieces of it end up clinging to those around you, some got on me and stayed, so thank you, Karen.

You have perpetual youth, it comes out of you. What a quality. If only we could all have this then we'd all stop time. But who wants to, really? Oops, am I saying something inappropriate? Oh, did I talk too much here? Could I have said it better? Yikes.

Karen Bedell, Club-Class Karen with the pink cut-offs, you are beautiful and ageless, you have the wisdom beyond your years, but the spirit of that young girl. Happy 50th Birthday!

Love, Cath