Love the Life you Live

These are my friends Mélodie and David Frere. They are two of the most life-loving, adventuresome, and full-hearted people I know. And I am so blessed to call them my friends. The world is a small place indeed. The people we interact with and meet, whether we've known for years or just for brief moments, can be sweet and fleeting, or everlasting, carrying on for much longer in ways we could have never foreseen.

While my experiences and time and with David and Mélo have been short, I feel like our times together have been meaningful. I met David and Mélo at Taza, a coffee shop I worked at for a few months back home in Arcadia, CA. These few months became a period of waiting and searching for me, for what I did not know and was painfully seeking, a transition to somewhere else I longed to be but did not know where. David became a good friend at Taza, showing me the ropes behind the coffee bar, with incredible patience and skill. He is the barista.

I always admire people who are so passionate about their work. They love it so much, that it becomes more of a way of life than a means to make a living. David knows coffee; he breathes it; it's in his veins; his heart; his soul. Not only is he skilled at making coffee, it's not just about the perfect cup. I think David appreciates more the people, the conversations, the ideas, the art, and the good times surrounding this drink. Coffee houses can be a place of solace, of inspiration, of community, for so many; and I think that is what he cherishes most from this craft.

Together, David and Mélo moved their lives from their home of Belgium to California a few years ago. David studied at Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, and Mélo tutored French. Mélo is an artist with an eye for interior design. She can transform any space into a beautiful work of art. I had the privilege of being invited to David's birthday party, and saw for myself their beautiful quaint home in Pasadena. They had just moved there, and I was blown away by the simplicity, sophistication and delicacy of their place. With many European friends in attendance, the lit candles and art nouveau-coffered ceiling felt like a chic European lounge.

Shortly after, I moved to Montana for my apprenticeship at Prairie Heritage Farm and didn't think I would see my Belgium friends again. David and Mélo were planning to return home to Belgium. Their dream is to one day open up a coffee shop decorated with American artifacts and antiques. They wanted to celebrate America with one last hoorah, so began a road trip across the States, hitting national landmarks and cities along the way (they are still on the road as I write this), collecting things and stories of a country they have fallen in love with to take back with them.

We were reunited here in Montana. They stopped here before heading to Yellowstone. Raul and I got to host them in Great Falls at our apartment and on the farm in Power. It was a great time. We had a BBQ and cooked with farm fresh veggies. Mélo inspired me to make Ratatouille!

I'm so happy for their adventures to come in Antwerp, where David has a fantastic job lined up. He will be making coffee for a company that works to help heal human trafficking victims. The program gives women an opportunity to learn a craft and start a new life.

Mélo and David freely live and love life, fearless and filled with faith and outpouring love for all the beauties the world has to offer, to all of us. Cheers Mélo and David! We will meet again one day in Belgium!





*photo by David Frere