Thoughts from the Back Porch 2018

June and the hustle and bustle of year-end activities are in the past. I made it through my 35th year as an SLP and can truthfully say, I am excited about 36! The beginning of June saw the high school graduation and 18th birthday of our second child, Mack, and all the planning and excitement of family celebrations. The end of June saw a trip to NYC for college orientation with the added bonus of being able to visit with family and our eldest child, Nora. Enter July and a wonderful ten days with Nora visiting.  We were able to do some binge watching of Star Trek Discovery, indulging in Big Catch onion rings, baking, kayaking, and hiking (the hike itself is a story for another day. Suffice it to say I was able to ascend my sixth 4,000 foot mountain in NH). I hate to see her leave and I don't really want to think about August when we drop Mack off at college.

Kayaking on Newfound Lake

Hike up Mount Moosilauke

Yesterday, I attended services atop Loon Mountain. It was a beautiful day with a stirring view. We rode the gondola to the summit. It was lovely. While the sermon had many meaningful elements, two items stood out. First the notion that "gifts are through us, not to us, but to others." I'm going to have to ponder that one. The second nugget was more of a challenge; to completely disconnect from distractions (screens, calendar, books, etc.) for all of the following for a straight shot: 1 hour per week, 24 hours per month, 7 days per year! I am sure I could do the first two, the last one would be tough. I would need a vacation on a secluded island for that! Another thing to ponder.

Loon Mt. ministry

My summer vacation has been relaxing and peaceful thus far. I am working at school one day a week for a four weeks. I haven't worked extended school year in quite some time and it has been fun. It's such a relaxed vibe. I'll share some of my summer fun speech activities soon.  

One last funny story. I love gardening and my flowers, veggies, and herbs are a source of respite in the summer. My favorite summer beverages include fresh mint. I muddle the mint and place it in a pitcher of water in the fridge. It's a refreshing way to get all my water in. I went out to dinner with friends in late June to celebrate a retirement and ordered an adult beverage with muddled mint. The server brought my drink and it had a funny aftertaste. The "mint" was all chopped up and hard to see, but a few leaves were whole. I removed the leaves from the glass and they were uncharacteristically teeny and fuzzy for mint. I quickly realized it was muddled oregano. I politely asked for another drink. This one was loaded with mint oregano. After tasting the herbs I showed the server and she responded adamantly that, "This is the only mint the bartender can find in the garden!" I said, "This is the only oregano the bartender can find in the garden." Sheesh! Wonder what he puts in a mojito?!