My Birthday Surprise!

Being away from my kids doesn’t get any easier, especially during birthdays and holidays. This year my birthday was just another day for me, and that was okay. I’d heard from all the kids throughout the day, and I’d received a beautiful ‘Edible Creation’ from Meg.

A couple weeks later, Drew texted me and said I should think about coming to OKC from April 1st to the 4th. When I questioned him, he just said it had been too long. Tickled that he wanted to see me, I shopped flights and found a cheap one from March 31st to April 3rd (Thursday to Sunday). He said no, it was important that I was there on Monday; he would say no more, stating he’d “already said too much.”

Intriguing.

I spent the next several weeks trying to guess WHY I would have to be there on a Monday. The different scenarios I could think of never sounded plausible, so I decided to simply enjoy the anticipation of being surprised. I made the trip out there and had a great time with the grandkids who all seemed happy to see me (even Scarlett!) I got to see Dez’s school, watch in anticipation for Evie’s daily wardrobe creation, and enjoy Scarlett’s imagination indoors and out.  Monday’s surprise was never mentioned.

Sunday afternoon Drew said he was taking me to dinner downtown OKC, but that the babysitter fell through and Kris couldn’t go. I was disappointed for her, but she said she was okay with it, so I went upstairs to change. When I came back down, Drew said, “I thought after dinner we could also do this,” and handed me two sheets of paper. I opened them to find two tickets to see Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band in concert at the Chesapeake Arena!!!!!

WHAAAAAAAAAT?!!!!!!!!!!!

All the kids and their wonderful spouses had chipped in for this knowing how much I love this guy, this band. I was excited beyond words and of course embarrassed myself with my typical reaction (which Kris so subtly recorded and sent to the other two for their enjoyment).

Dinner on the river was really lovely. I thoroughly enjoyed some rare one-on-one time with my oldest child, trying to remember when that had happened last. The concert…well, I’ll never forget it. It was so amazing knowing that this band, in various forms, has been creating their quickly identifiable sound since the early 70’s! And while members have come and gone, those most familiar to me were there:  Bruce, his wife, Patti, Stevie, Nils, and Max. And though I missed Clarence, it was heartening to see his nephew Jake step into his uncle’s role with his own ‘Clemons’ style. They look and sound better than ever. This 66-year-old rocker and (in his words) his ‘viagra-taking’ band played, without stopping, for 3+ hours; no opener, no break. He involved the crowd, leaving the stage singing “Hungry Heart” while he signed kids’ shirts, took selfies with attendees, and then CROWD SURFED BACK TO THE STAGE! In between songs, the arena would fill with the familiar, “BRUUUUUUUUCE!!” As soon as he’d finish one song, he’d toss his guitar to someone backstage, catch another one, go back to the mic and yell, “ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR…!” and swing right into his next, hurling us back, again and again, to our glory days.