He has three days between school ending and working at camp. He is in great demand to be seen. I will have brunch with the local family on one of those days. We will celebrate Isaac and Ari’s birthdays. We will also discuss when he will be around at the end of the summer.

Precious times.

On Saturday, my friend Kevin is coming over for coffee and lemon bread. On Sunday, Erik and I are having lunch together after he helps the Camp Tawonga kids board their busses. It will be catch up discussions with each.

I value conversations.

I attended my Friday meeting of Alameda Referral Group which I have done for 11 years. It unexpectedly became an open discussion on AI. It was meaningful to listen to the 14 people share their opinions and experience spontaneously.

There will be ongoing change in our lives.

I have been calling friends to see how they are doing. Two have had surgery to deal with much pain, and one recently lost a parent. Another friend lives in Alabama where there have been ongoing threats of tornadoes.

It is good to hear their voices.

Houses are suddenly up for sale, including one next door to me. There are four apartments in it and one tenant told me she knows two intend to stay. New neighbors, new owner…anticipation of how it will be.

Change

My dear friend Marjie died suddenly. She lived In Michigan and we met in our PhD program. I stayed with her when I visited Michigan. I feel a large empty space in my life.

Sadness.

Changes take place inside my home too. The carpeting and towels change color in the bathroom, and a light comforter is on the bed. Traditionally I do this to have a visual change. It also heightens awareness of the new seasons.

Variety.

On one of my walking routes, I met Parker, a pit bull. I always had treats for her. She would always pull the leash to see me. Over time, she was walking more slowly and shorter distances. One day I did not see her, I sent her Dad a message and he said they had put her down.

I miss her.

I woke up and I saw it was 5:25 AM. My typical wake up time. I did my exercises in bed and found I had no discomfort doing so. When I finished, I sat up and noticed it was 9:35 PM. It was easier to exercise because I had not been laying in bed for eight hours.

I thought my body had progressed.

When I ask someone what makes them happy, most pause; it is something we don’t think about. There is no ongoing state of happiness; we need to continuously feed the feeling. It may be events or people. It may be thoughts or experiences. It can be the sun, a joke, a child, an animal, or a memory. It can be an awareness.

Make it happen.