jounrey.life
A love letter to our friend and family, Dana.
Dear Friends,
You are among the few who Dana has asked to be part of her 55th birthday celebration, in Napa on the third of December. As you know, this is her gift to those of us whom she cherishes and holds close to her heart. It’s Dana’s way of acknowledging the people who have loved for her years. Whether those years have been few, or if they have been many—you have been there through the good times and the dark times without question or judgement.
Simply put, this weekend is Dana’s love letter to all of us.
Dana has asked that you bring no gifts of any kind. There isn’t anything that she needs or wants other than time to spend with each of you. This is her heartfelt wish and desire.
With that said, I ask that we let Dana know the impact she has made on each an everyone of us.
Each one of you will write a love letter to Dana. Interpret this as you will. Just share what feels right for you. Write from your heart. Each of your letters will be included on a private webpage for Dana. An everlasting gift that will be with her always. The website is:
jounrey.life
I’m sure that all of you know the story of journey. It came about during Dana’s 40th birthday celebration. A simple typo at the end of a video slideshow has become a powerful metaphor for Dana’s life. The mixed-up word “journey” becoming jounrey so appropriately conveys that the journey of life is never perfect, but it is quite amazing and always uniquely your own.
A quick backstory to this gift of a love letter to Dana. Dana’s favorite movie is Under the Tuscan Sun. In short, it’s about a woman, Frances, who is at a crossroads in her life when she finds herself alone and no longer married. On a whim, she purchases a Tuscan Villa while visiting Italy. She dreams of rebuilding her life in hopes of finding love again and creating the family she always wanted. In the story she crosses a path with a handsome Italian man and they begin to fall in love. One day as she is about to meet him for a romantic weekend, her close, pregnant friend, Patti, shows up from America announcing that her partner has left her and she is now alone and scared. Frances tells her friend to come inside, rest and they’ll spend time together. Now, a line which has become one of Dana’s favorites comes after Patti insists, she leaves her at the house and goes to meet her Italian lover. Patti says, “I don’t want to screw up your love life.” Frances responds without a beat, “Don’t be silly. You are my love life.”
We are Dana’s love life
I ask that you send me your love letter by November 30th. Feel free to send it to me inside an email or attach a word document. Whatever works best for you. If you have any questions at all, don’t hesitate to ask.
On the night of Dana’s birthday dinner, I will hand Dana a beautiful envelope. Inside will be a single card with only this printed on it — journey.life
She will probably be a bit puzzled. I’ll let her know that we understand that this weekend is her love letter to each of us. So, we were moved to share our love letters to her.
Something like that…
Thank you in advance for your important contribution to this gift.
See you all very soon.
Mark