Welcome to another Grateful Heart Monday, where gratitude remains the sole expression in my writing at the start of every week, which for today is for my trip just over a week ago to Massachusetts to connect with my best friend Cedric where I also got to connect with a few other friends and 12 Step recovery connections as well.
This was my second trip back to Massachusetts this year, the place where I lived prior to living here in Toledo, Ohio. Normally, Cedric and I alternate visiting each other every six months, but with all the unrest going on at home, we both felt it best for me to come there instead. I was glad I did because I got to create several deep heartfelt memories in the process.
One of the most heartfelt ones included attending a gathering for a dear friend named Dave who passed away due to a motorcycle accident. There I reconnected with many of my former recovery buddies and was also given the opportunity to speak about him and what he meant to me. Having those moments to do so truly moved my heart and soul.
Another wonderful memory was spending the day with my recovery and MKP friend Sean who I’ve known for as long as Cedric and who always allows me to bare my heart and soul without judgment. On our day together, he took me to Newport, Rhode Island where I shared quite deeply with him as we walked along some of the cliff walk there, then taking a drive around the island to see some of the most amazing ocean cliff mansions after, grabbing dinner later in a nearby town at an amazing upscale seafood restaurant named The Black Pearl, continuing great conversation over a coffee next, and showing me his childhood home and neighborhood before dropping me off and heading home to his partner.
Just as heartfelt as my day with Sean was getting to see my dear friend Debbie. She was once my supervisor at Arbella Mutual Insurance eons ago and who I’ve now known as long as I’ve known Cedric as well. If there is one superb quality about Debbie, it’s that she’s an incredible listener and someone I’ve always felt safe around, enough to tell her anything, and something I’ve come to love her dearly for. The two of us had breakfast at a local joint named Joe’s Diner in Taunton, MA where she listed to my heart and saw my tears, both then and at coffee afterwards.
As for the rest of my trip, I am grateful for the new memories I built with Cedric that included watching the movie Devotion, visiting the ICA museum in Boston, traveling to Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, MA, having several great meals and coffee times together, and for some laughter I was able to muster with him at times, given how low I’ve felt as of late. For my recovery friends Rob, Stevie, Kelly, Dave, and Kathy who came to have dinner with me and then went afterwards to a local Christmas lights festival on a very snowy evening. For all my other recovery friends there as well who embraced me over meals, coffees, and conversations, making me feel that living life still matters given that lately I haven’t felt much like that. And lastly for Dave who brought me to the airport on my day of return, who I had a nice conversation with on the way there, and for him treating me to a coffee and a breakfast sandwich before dropping me off.
I’m truly thankful for each of these things during this trip and for the love I received during a time in my life when I most need it.
Peace, love, light, and joy,
Andrew Arthur Dawson
