I have truly come “Home” this past week. I flew to Reston, Virginia, to attend, for the first time, AssistUs annual Community Recognition Awards and a two-day retreat, during which a group of nine AssistU trained VAs re-evaluated their businesses.
 
Sounds like a straight business convention-type gathering, right? Nay, it is not so at all.
 
I arrived in the afternoon and found myself immediately recognized and hugged by Anastacia Brice, her husband Dominic and my dear friend Karen Cleveland, whom I trained with. Before I could blink an eye I was handed a key to Anastacia’s suite and told that all of us women who participated in the retreat, should come and go as we please. Being in the suite and together with the others who, during the following four days would become dear friends is an experience that had and has a profound impact on me. We learned together, brainstormed, hugged, supported and received support, cried, and knew we could “let it hang out” without being judged or loved less.
 
At the end of the retreat we had already bonded together very strongly. This bond was strengthened even more in the following days, when awards were handed out and many more AssistU Virtual Assistants had joined us for Questions and Answer sessions, sightseeing, fun, and laughter, sometimes to the wee morning hours.
 
Yesterday and today are days of farewells, of “see you next year,” of an immense feeling of unconditional love, and almost of loss when another one of my new dear, dear friends left. And yet, I feel secure and warm inside my “bubble of love” created here, in Reston.
 
Farewell my friends, may this coming year bring all of you what you desire, and may we all meet again at next year’s Community Recognition Awards and “Homecoming”.