Sunrise. Sunset. Those words begin the chorus of the song with the same title from Fiddler on the Roof. During the seventies that song was sung at every wedding, guaranteed to bring grown men to their knees and reaching for their handkerchiefs.

“Seedlings turn overnight to sunflowers.” Today I had breakfast with a sunflower. Missy is the daughter of the first people I met in California. Thais and I were young newlyweds, working at SF General together. Before long we were having babies, buying houses, having more babies.

Missy was their first child, and she led the way – teaching us how to be parents and teaching the kids how to be kids. Missy was not a shy toddler – we’d hear her whispering to Joe and we’d hear him giggling and before we knew it they were involved in some kind of toddler mischief. Missy may have been the older and wiser gal, but Joe was happy to follow her lead! We had many good times travelling and camping together before the busy life of school aged children limited our time together.

Fast forward to 2010. Missy became a nurse, fell in love with a young man from Rockford, Illinois, and now this California born and bred woman is going to live here in Illinois. They will be married next summer (I am honored to be able to sing at the wedding.) I am, of course, delighted by the idea of her living here and have decreed what I think about everyone’s warnings to her about the winter: “Pshaw!”

It just seemed surreal today to meet in Crystal Lake, Illinois, a quaint little Illinois lake town in the middle of farm country, halfway between Rockford and my hometown. Who could have predicted that outcome so many years ago when I first held that little baby girl? She has all kinds of ideas for her mother and me: that we rent a cottage for three months a year after she has children. At the very least that we coordinate our travels together – we can take the Chicago area by storm. I cannot wait to get home to California to have lunch with Thais and start planning!

I also want to tell her this: her seedling grew up into a most beautiful sunflower – lovely to look at, sensitive, caring, funny and best of all – she’s an Illinois girl now!