Where you are

Days go by, years go by. It is hard to remember the children we once were, or the teenagers, sometimes even the young adult years are beyond grasp, but the memory of friendship is one that rarely fades. As we grow and change we can easily lose sight of the connections from our youth, but reunion with friends is a sweet moment, even if brief. We gathered today at a nearby lake with friends from my past. Sixteen years ago we graduated together, and today we reconnected to laugh and chat and watch our children play. From one generation to the next.

Childhood friendships do not always go with us into adulthood—we lose touch, we grow in different directions, we start families at different times or in different ways—but respect and fondly shared memories are a good basis for rekindling, or an enjoyably spent afternoon. Thankfully it was neither 90+ degrees nor storming, and the afternoon was breezy and comfortably cool as we gathered near the play structure to watch the kids weave in and out while we caught up on current life news. The past can rear up and bite with regret, or nostalgia can bring a pain of longing, but enjoying the people we've become and the generation we've created brings a heady feeling of contentment and ability, and a sense of being right where you should be. And at the end of the day, where you are really is where you should be.

That time of year again

College football is back. We live in a college football town and the start of the season is something we look forward to every year. I know not everyone feels that way. People who live here usually either love or hate the football program because on home game Saturdays the entire city gets locked up. We have the largest football stadium (the third largest sports stadium in the world), and funneling more than 110,000 fans into, and then out of, such a small area for every game is a practice in patience for all who live here, and all who are visiting.

This year's football season arrived in a rather unusual fashion. Tailgating in temperatures upwards of 90 degrees is not as much fun as usual, but my family has been tailgating with the same crowd since I was young, possibly since before I was born, and our festivities are as much tradition as any other holiday. And as with other holidays, it brings me great joy to see my son enjoying the same activities with the same people, and the next generation. So, not to be missed, we spent a very hot afternoon enjoying grilled sausage and other fun foods while summoning the energy to play games, dance, and laugh in spite of the heat. We don't get to go to all the games, but I can honestly say that today I didn't envy anyone their tickets. And as it turned out the game was short lived, being called in the third quarter due to severe weather. And that makes our first win under a new coach. I can only hope the remainder of the year is less eventful, but equally as successful.

Help from a friend

Counting to 1,000

Chicago may have been a short trip, but it includes a time change and that always throws me off, plus I seem to have found a summer cold while I was unpacking and being under the weather never helps.

Today wasn't exciting, and that was exciting. Sometimes I just need to revel in the ordinary. Calvin is going to town on the workboxes and I think our version of the method is going to be a good fit for us. They might be just the right balance of my suggestions and his control. Today he moved seamlessly from piano assignments given by Jon, to practicing handwriting, to making maps, to playing a game with me over lunch, all things that were suggestions in his boxes. Later he did some math practice, drew some pictures, made a map of Antarctica using his blanket and his new penguins, played with tangrams and then read to me while I rested on the couch at the very end of the day.

If I was to pick one stand-out moment for today, and maybe every day should have at least one of these lest I forget how beautiful every day is, it would be the moment at dinner when Calvin confidently declared that he was going to count to one thousand. And I'd have to include the moment when I'm sure both Jon and I thought briefly of saying "that will take too long" and instead let him just go to it. He successfully reached two hundred and decided that he would continue the count tomorrow. I enjoyed that moment all the way to the park and back, and clearly I am still enjoying it now. That, I think, is the power of any moment to make a whole day magical.

Graceful gardens for galavanting

Sometimes, right around the corner, there is a beautiful world just awaiting discovery. I am fully aware that, where we live, we are surrounded by such places that we most definitely should be visiting, and yet somehow we never quite stop in. This is not due to lack of interest, nor to laziness. I think the real culprit is forgetfulness. And I'm sure I'm not the first person to have said "I always forget that's so close" when reminded of things like the historic park to the west of us or the botanical gardens to the east.

It was a friend who suggested the botanical gardens as a place for us to meet with our kids today, and thankfully the palm slap I gave to my head didn't keep us from joining them there. The botanical gardens? Well duh. They've been just 15 minutes away this whole time, but today was our first visit.

Gardens are peaceful and calming

and we love trees and flowers and the bugs that love them.

And then there's the children's garden for running

and getting lost in mazes

and trying out instruments

and teamwork for building

and creating fairy houses

and splashing in water.

Gardens are peaceful and exhilarating and full of a living energy that transfers to all life around them, and if I can remember to do so, we'll be back again in the not-so-distant future.

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