My Gratitude for Friendship

This has been a heck of a week for me - I went to Ojo last weekend and really enjoyed it. Not really the warm waters, nor the pedicure, it was that I had the pleasure to spend 2 hours up there and then 2 hours back in the car with a friend. I have not seen this friend in close to a year - and although we email and facebook - there is nothing like shared windshield time. I did have to reflect on how funny it was back in about 1998 when she would come and travel with me - I was so scared to have her in my car (she was my boss and I always feared I was doing something wrong because I loved my job so much....). But it was the ease of the talk from one thing to the next, sometimes not even finishing and back to a different story. And, although we have many of the same professional interests, we never talked about work until we stopped at a Starbucks close to my house. But, even then, it was a fun thing, our lives are parallel again. From that comes what I have written about so many times here, which is that friendship and the ease of authentic friendship. Today I went to lunch with my boss from my internship last summer. She is a real nice person. You know, just really nice. She has accepted a job in Tampa and is moving over the next month or so, we talked for almost 3 hours at lunch. Again, it was the ease and sharing, being excited about the newness of her opportunity. And it occurred to me, through my journey - it has been my friends that I have held onto for dear life. The friends that called me or just dropped a line. And, now looking back, that is the most important which is having the will and the way to reach out when you have to. I am on facebook and have re-connected with some other friends, and to be honest, I allow only certain people in - why - because - and this may sound weird is that I want to have a connection with most of them. So anyhow - I have talked about Steve Porter before - he died last year and was the CEO of IHG when I was there. Why I bring him up is that his was authentic in how he dealt with people - at all levels. So, when I contemplate how I want to live the "rest of my life" I really want to live it. That includes making sure to get the good stuff while I am still here on this planet - not after I am gone. The following is from the facebook page and I'll leave it at that for tonight. Peace be with you.

Steve was an outstanding individual. A man of complete integrity and one of the leading hoteliers of his generation, he was enthusiastic and passionate in everything he did. He was, in every sense, a real ‘people person’ and felt as comfortable in the break room as he did in the Boardroom.
Recent News
Steve Porter to receive the Meetings, Conventions and Exhibitions Industry's Highest HonorSent by Corporate Communications, 24 March 2009 Steve Porter, along with four other meetings, conventions, exhibition and travel industry pioneers will join 97 fellow leaders immortalized in the Convention Industry Council's (CIC) Hall of Leaders. Steve was selected from a group of extraordinary nominees representing the most outstanding leaders and innovators in the industry. The honorees will be inducted at the 2010 Hall of Leaders Gala in January held in conjunction with the Professional Convention Management Association's Annual Meeting.Memorial of Steve PorterThe ceremony took place in the hills high above LA on a bright, sunny day. It was a wonderful setting and a number of people commented that it was a place that truly suited Steve - very impressive and somehow just right.The ceremony was very moving. The minister spoke many kind words to help us remember all that Steve had stood for and what he meant to those who had the privilege to know him. For all of us, however, I am sure it was the few, poignant words spoken by his two sons, Steve Jr. and Charlie that will stay in our minds. They related what their father had meant to them in a number of ways, but both commented that they would always remember Steve’s optimism and words of comfort that he had so often said to them - "don't worry, it will be alright." We will remember Steve for a long time to come, but he left us with fond memories, a great strategy and a strong business that we will move forward.