Jenny's birthday surprise

We are having a surprise birthday party for my friend Jenny this Friday evening. She is turning 50! Her husband Vic came up with the idea of throwing her a party that would include both friends AND family. Not an easy feat to have the relatives attend, seeing as they ALL live in England (with the exception of a sister-in-law that lives outside of Rome!) This past weekend, the Langfords arrived in mass...all twelve of them... mum and dad (both sets), brothers and sisters and all their kids!

We have been scheeming and plotting for months to keep the plans for Jenny's birthday a secret. I designed the invitations, and everybody is helping out with food and fun for the party. Friday afternoon she is to be whisked away, so that we can decorate the house and set up and all be there to surprise her when she walks back through the door. Phase I of the plan went off without a hitch, when on Monday, Jenny went out to lunch and was surprised and overwhelmed by the entire English clan! Phase II...well, we are not sure what is going to happen on Friday evening.

You see on Sunday Jenny called me and asked if I would like to go hiking up Mission Peak on Tuesday morning after the kids were off to school. At first, I thought, "Wow, I have so much work to do" and then I asked, "Why on a Tuesday?" She replied, kind of shyly, that it was her birthday and she wanted to be standing on the top to celebrate her big day. I had been so busy with plans for the upcoming party on Friday, and all of our plans of subterfuge, that I had completely lost track of the fact that Tuesday, today, was her actual birthday. So, I readily agreed to go with her, hoping that I wouldn't spill the beans about the party on Friday night!

Well, we climbed the peak today, Jenny, I, another girlfriend and Jenny's brother and sister. It was a glorious day. We got to the top and enjoyed the view. Every one was having a great time. But, as we started back down the slope, that is when disaster struck. I was in the lead and Jenny behind me, when she began to slip on some loose gravel. She hit the ground hard and tried to break her fall with her left hand. She heard the pop and doubled over in pain and then we realized that she had just broken her wrist. There we were at the top of the Peak with a long way to go to get to the bottom. Luckily one of us had a cell phone and we called 911. A few moments later the dispatch told us that they were sending a helicopter to her rescue! We cheered and danced around...all except poor Jen, of course. We gathered around her and helped her through the pain as we waited for the helicopter that would carry her to the hospital.

Now, Mission Peak is pretty peaky, and we weren't at all sure where they were going to land a helicopter. To our surprise they managed to put the helicopter down at the very tippy top right next to us. It was so precariously perched on the hill, that I was afraid it would tumble right on down the side of the mountain. But, it didn't, and Jenny was carefully helped into the chopper by two hunky rescue guys. Not once did she cry or complain. Surely, I would have been a teary-eyed mess had our situations been reversed. We watched as she was flown down the mountain and away to the hospital. The four of us that remained, made our way back down the hill, feeling both miserable and bemused by the situation at the same time. Some day, we assured ourselves, Jenny will laugh at this adventure. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But someday!

Meanwhile there is still that big surprise birthday bash that we are throwing for Jen on Friday. We are all keeping our fingers crossed that she will be up for yet another surprise. Hopefully! If not, her birthday will still be an event. One way or another we will be telling this story over and over and over again. It may not turn out to be the birthday of her dreams, but the fact that she is surrounded by so many friends and loved ones today, makes her a very lucky person, indeed!