Brittany

No, not that one. This Brittany is Steve's cousin's daughter. She's a college student in North Carolina (where her parents, sister and grandparents live too) and was in a very bad car accident many months ago. She was in a coma for a while, then rehab and she's been home for two months now.

While all this was going on, a friend of hers set up a page on this Caring Bridge website to keep us all informed. It was a genuine pleasure to read of Brittany's slow, but steady progress. I was reminded of the 9 years I volunteered at The Ronald McDonald House - and the families I got to know who had a loved one in the hospital. A situation that seems completely hopeless in the beginning, can really turn around. Medicine and miracles are such a cool thing.

Brittany and her family, including her grandparents (Steve's Uncle Bill & Aunt Mary) came up to Rochester this week to visit and thank everyone for their support. Steve's mom's family has a family reunion every year, the day after Christmas and they used to come up every year for that, but haven't for the last couple of years. So yesterday's event was like that - but in the summer, a nice change of pace. We all (maybe 40 people) hung out in the backyard of Steve's Uncle Jim and Aunt Gretchen, each brought a dish to pass. I got to meet Steve's Uncle Bill's new (to them) dog, Buddy. Buddy is part Beagle and part Basenji. I couldn't keep my hands off this dog - he was just the right size, the right temperament, so sweet. Steve kept shaking his head at me, because before Reggi, I was all, "I'm just not a dog person." (I borrowed this picture from Basenji Rescue, but he looks just like Buddy!)

Brittany can walk with assistance, has pretty good use of her left arm and speaks a few words now and again. (Maybe she just didn't have a lot to say last night either!) We all thought she looked fantastic. She seemed very happy.

I'm quite sure she doesn't remember me but I wanted to speak with her anyway, make a connection. Her whole family is so personable and likeable. I couldn't keep my eyes off her mom, who is such a nice person. Her dad too. Watching her parents, I started to get a little misty, thinking about what it's like for a parent to go through something like this, not knowing if your child will survive, knowing her life and your own lives, have been changed forever. I thought I was going to have to go into the house to have a little cry but I sucked it up, breathed through it and was just fine.

I was asked to bring a salad so I brought this tomato mozzarella basil dish.

Edited to add: Sorry, Lynne, I didn't think to add the recipe because it's just slices of tomatoes alternated with slices of fresh mozzarella. I have used fresh basil but this time I just sprinkled it with dried basil. I don't usually add this vinaigrette but decided to try it this time - so I did, in fact, use a recipe this time. Even though I used a lot more tomatoes and mozzarella than the recipe calls for, I used this exact recipe for the vinaigrette. I probably won't use any vinaigrette at all next time. I wasn't wild about it, but that's just me.

TOMATO, MOZZARELLA, AND BASIL SALAD

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/4 teaspoon English dry mustard

1/8 teaspoon sugar

1 large vine-ripened tomato, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices

1/4 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices

6 to 8 large fresh basil leaves, sliced thin

In a small bowl whisk together oil, vinegar, garlic, mustard, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. On a platter arrange tomato slices alternately with mozzarella and top with basil. Drizzle salad with vinaigrette.

Serves 2.