Rhonda

I've been telling you a lot about the things we do, and most of you who read this know me on some level. However, I haven't really told you much about the people I'm with. So, here they are, in no particular order, an entry for each of the four people I've lived, slept, played, driven, laughed, cried, prayed, danced, sung, driven, argued and eaten with the last five months. They all have their strengths and weaknesses, but these entries are meant to be an encouragement, so I will not post their faults on the Internet for all to see.

The first thing I can say about Rhonda is that she's thoughtful. She's the type who notices how people in the group are feeling, and pays attention to what they say. She always does thoughtful little things; like buying tzaziki (sp?) for me, standing in line twice so she could make some maple taffy at the sugar bush when I couldn't make it, going to "Tim Hortons" and surprising Reneyah by getting her a beloved caramel macchiato from Starbucks, letting me cry and cry the day I found out that Sarah had died, and many other little things. She taught Jonathan to crochet and me how to knit. She's knitting these little dolls of us in costume; they're so cute. When we were in Ontario with Jonathan's family, she decided to make his little brother an "ultra-mini-Jonathan;" basically a finger puppet. Just whipped it up while we were all sitting there talking! No problem!
Before most shows, Rhonda and I sit backstage for about half an hour. We often dance at some point in that half hour; not really for any particular reason. She recently came up with a move she calls the “washing machine;” I’ll let your imagination run wild on that one.
I’ve mentioned before that Rhonda is very patriotic. She really loves Canada as a whole, especially her hometown of Ottawa. Whenever someone visits Ottawa, her goal is to show them enough to let them fall in love with it. It definitely worked for me; Ottawa is a beautiful city. I think it was even better having a tour guide like Rhonda, because she’s passionate about it. She’s really affected my view of Ottawa and Eastern Canada. Albertans generally have a feeling of animosity towards the Canadian government, and we usually make Ottawa the direction in which we point our frustrations. “Ottawa” is the enemy. But it’s really not. It’s just the city housing our elected MPs. A gorgeous city, I might add.
The second week of rehearsal, I asked Rhonda how she and Jeremy had ended up together. She talked for about an hour and a half, telling the story in exquisite detail. I asked Jeremy the same question a few days later and he told his side in about two minutes. Time permitting, Rhonda leaves nothing out of important stories. And I do mean nothing.
Interactions in our team sometimes reach a certain heat level at which things start to get uncomfortable. These are the moments, particularly those involving Jeremy and Reneyah, when Rhonda steps in as the diplomat. Her attention to detail allows her to adequately explain the viewpoints of either side, usually resulting in dissolving the disagreement and everyone going on their merry way. Then she shakes her head and sighs at our silly miscommunications.
Then there was the time she wore a shirt on her head, there's her passion for theatre, particularly directing, her passion for children and definite anticipation of having her own, her desire to get closer to God, how she sings to her kazoo backstage, how collapsible she is, her mad sale-finding skills, her discovery of Ajeeb, our East Indian van, and a zillion other funny little things she does that make her Rhonda. Before she and Jeremy were even dating, she had said "It will take one special woman to be married to Jeremy."
Well, it did.
I love you, Rhonda.