This little lovely is one of twelve photobooth shots captured in a vintage booth at the Santa Cruz boardwalk arcade one month ago. There are other classicly hysterical ones that I will share in time but I chose this one today because it best captures the beauty - outer and inner - of these friends, Beth and Belinda.

I have hinted around the edges that it has been a tough couple of months for me. I originally had other plans for this night back in March. And then things changed. I suddenly had an extra ticket to see Patty Griffin at a small club in Santa Cruz that night. I considered selling it. Or letting it dry up and go unused. Standing alone in a crowd of strangers and letting the powerful emotions stirred by the music wash the pain in me clean.

But these girls? They would not stand for it. Not only did that extra ticket get used but another was purchased and the three of us journeyed the hour and forty minutes down to this funky little beach town. We stopped first at the arcade to indulge my photobooth obsession, had an excellent dinner at an out of the way Greek restaurant and then headed for the venue.

The music started as we stood ten feet from Patty and, then, the most beautiful thing happened. I stood between these two dear souls and they cried as the beauty washed over us in waves. I had feared it would be me with the tears but I was marveling at the overwhelming sense of gratitude that I felt when Patty sang these words...

" Tomorrow may rain with sorrow
Here's a little time we can borrow
Forget all our troubles in these moments so few
All we've got right now, the only thing that
we really have to do
Is have ourselves a heavenly day..."

And did we ever.


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More photobooth friday here and here.