the give

I have such good people in my life, so generous and thoughtful.
Tonight a chef friend poured bubbly and fed me and others morsels she'd labored over for days. Then she sent us home with a clove-scented favor. Friday night I arrived at some other friends' house, cold and wet and tired from work and a long bus ride. They greeted me with kisses and hugs and smiles and a manhattan, perfectly delicious right down to two whiskey-soaked cherries.Yesterday my sister picked me up after another long bus ride (a theme here, no?) and later, my niece shared her favorite bubble gum from Uwajimaya and as we sat next to each other on massage chairs, she patiently leafed through People magazine to show me just the right handsomely-scruffy celebrity.
The best gifts are these, off the list and offered without reserve.