From JuJu with Love

We started calling this our own “Big Chill” weekend long before we packed the SUV.

On the drive north, the soundtrack was playing through the speakers, and Jeanne and I laughed remembering that freshman year at Michigan, we had each taken a class where we analyzed the movie. At 18, it was just an assignment.

More than four decades later, it felt a lot more like a documentary.

Apparently my roommates had two expectations after reading my last blog. First, that I’d packed a Michigan T-shirt. Second, that my Michigan flag would be the size of a bedsheet.

Instead, I showed up with a hat, a perfectly respectable travel-sized flag, and a legal argument that “gear” is not synonymous with “shirt.”

The jury remained unconvinced.

As it turns out, we didn’t need a U-Haul… but we did manage to fill an entire SUV for four women going away for three days. In our defense, there were hiking clothes, winery clothes, dinner clothes, snacks, coolers, backpacks, and apparently enough Michigan gear to spark a debate over the definition of the word “gear.”

Saturday began with a beautiful walk along the water before we wandered onto the Leelanau Trail. Along the way, we found a sign that simply said, “You Are Enough.”

It was one of those little moments that seems to find you exactly when you need it.

Four miles later, we felt energized, grateful, and completely justified in what came next.

The winery tour.

Beautiful views. Wonderful wines. A few cocktails. Endless laughter.

The kind of day that reminds you why you’ve stayed friends for more than forty years.

Of course, every elegant winery tour eventually comes to an end.

We piled back into the SUV, headed home, and within minutes four supposedly sophisticated women were standing around the kitchen island eating everything we’d packed in the back of Jeanne’s car.

Chips.
Veggies.
Dip.
Whatever we could find.

Apparently this is what our own Big Chill looks like in our 60s.

And honestly?

It’s perfect.

As the sun went down, we built a bonfire, made s’mores, turned on the Bee Gees, and laughed until our faces hurt.

The day’s itinerary looked something like this:

✔️ Walk 4 miles
✔️ Winery tour
✔️ Cocktails
✔️ Eat everything in the back of Jeanne’s SUV
✔️ Bonfire
✔️ S’mores
✔️ 80’s music

We got in enough steps to cover everything we ate.

At least that’s the story we’re all agreeing to.

Maybe that’s why this weekend felt so special.

We weren’t trying to relive college.

None of us wished we were twenty again.

We were simply grateful that after all these years, we still have each other.

And maybe that’s the real lesson of The Big Chill.

The memories aren’t the point.

The people are.

Forty years ago we could drink a lot more.

Today, we savor the wine a little more… and treasure the company a whole lot more. ❤️

From Juju with love 💙💛