Damon Turns 57

What a wonderful birthday Mitzi gave me today! She went all out and made it very special and delightful. Having a birthday in France with Mitzi is an amazing experience, a dream come true. I feel very loved and am well cared for.

This first picture is Mitzi hanging our clothes out to dry. She was so excited to do this!

Then we headed 5 minutes up the road to Castelnau de Montmiral. A medieval village built in the 1200's. And much of it is still intact. And it's charming.

We had lunch at L'auberge in the town square.

Chicken cordon bleu!

It was all so delicious. A group of French guys sat behind me and Mitzi got this picture.

Le Pilori is a pillar where, back in the day, they tied animals before they sacrificed them. Also the story goes that women who committed adultery were tied there to humiliate them. Yikes!

The road to the little village turns into dirt and rocks as we drive through fields. It felt like we were trespassing but they are public roads.

The pool is just big enough for a swim workout. Yay!

For dinner we went to Le Montainais. Fine dining in the French countryside. What a wonderful experience!

The servers didn't speak any English at all, but we managed to communicate pretty well with a little French. Each day we are getting better, recogning more words and being able to say more as well. It's fun and satisfying to make it all work.

This dining experience makes me feel whole. I deeply loved it. So enjoyable, delightful, and real. I just feel like a real and whole person here and I'm very happy.

The dinner started with appetizers outside as the sun set. After about an hour we went into the restaurant to have the meal.

The menu of course was all in French. We used a translator app to help us understand it better.

The presentation is 10/10. The taste is 10/10. The quality is 10/10. The environment is 10/10. What a great dining experience.

I wanted to let the lady serving us to know how much I enjoyed the entree. So when she came to collect the empty plate I said, "délicieuse" (delicious) and she got a huge smile on her face.

After eating the dessert when she came to collect the plate I said, "incroyable" (incredible)! And she beamed.

Mitzi enjoyed watching me have fun with the language and discover ways to communicate that showed my delight. It was truly delightful.

And with that I'm 57. Grateful I made it this far. As Alissa said in a text, "glad your heart held on and you have joy in your life!" I'm grateful my heart held on and that I have joy again in my life.

Mitzi, our children, our grandchildren, her extended family, my extended family, and Tiffany's extended family have expressed love to me. I feel surrounded and supported by people who love me and it's the greatest feeling in the world.