Rita, thank you for your note. Oh, I am so sorry if my e-mails on the list
caused you any distress. Perhaps I should have made it very clear that I do
not see "smooth sailing" as the only nice way to live; that difficult
experiences are just as worthwhile as those that give us no problems. Having
come so close to not living, I can say honestly, that I relish it all.
Example: I love to hike in the wilderness--an often tiring, dirty, dangerous
activity, but the rewards are magnificent, as when one idiscovers a small
waterfall where the only other sounds besides one's breathing are soft
breezes through the leaves and the chattering insects. You have the idea.
What you did was, sorry to disagree with you, really something special, in my
opinion. When one is exhausted the kind offering of one's own place to rest
and a clean t-shirt is a fine gift. But you know that. By the way, I should
have given credit to Joao as well; he was quite the congenial historian when
I bombarded him with questions about Portugal.

I expect to see you next year in Maine. Many of us want you to come to the US
to enjoy one of the beautiful areas on this continent. The natives in Maine
are generally a crabby lot, but you will be with friends.  And by then I hope
to have my cabin in the woods in Maine, and maybe have my northern studio up
and running.    Joan