I can't believe August is almost over. I meant to do so much more planning work this summer for classes, and while I did plan in my brain, it didn't transfer fully to paper and practice. Now I'm playing catch-up - but also want to record some summer highlights.
While the summer had its moments of rest, it was fairly full. The last couple of weeks flew by in between trips to see family and visits from friends. I know I wrote earlier in the summer about my quandary over attending the family reunion the last weekend of July or going to Ireland for a Yeats conference with my husband. Although I still would like to return to Ireland someday, it turns out I chose wisely because my husband ended up being unable to go to Ireland, and instead had to go to Rome. Poor guy. It was a short trip for him and miserably hot in Europe at the time, so it wasn't his favorite trip to Rome ever, although it was apparently a productive trip.
Meanwhile, the family reunion was the source of much reminiscing and meditating on family roots. I was able to reconnect with cousins I hadn't seen in years, and although the weather was rainy and muggy, we spent so much time talking, poor weather wasn't an issue. My aunt and cousin had pulled out lots of old photos and memorabilia from family events, and my mom and uncle shared their thoughts on family legacies. Reviewing the photos I took, I wish I had taken more to capture everyone in closer range, instead of just a few group shots, because we so enjoyed studying our younger selves in old photos and watching old videos my cousin had transferred to digital formats. But the reason I didn't was because I was too busy talking and not on my phone.
Although my husband and 3 kids on the coasts couldn't come, the kids near home came - our 3 youngest and our oldest and his family. I wish the others could have attended just as another reminder of their rootedness in a family larger than what they sometimes recall, but our San Diego vacation used up their travel time and funds. Meanwhile, one of my local cousins and his family didn't attend, which I think made my aunt really sad. I halfway expected this, but I promised myself that even if I sacrificed a trip to Europe, I wasn't going to begrudge any one who didn't come. And I didn't - I was thankful not to be leaving my kids behind and getting on a plane, and I loved seeing my parents and siblings, nieces and nephews, and aunt and uncle and cousins. I hope the cousin who planned most of the weekend was happy with the outcome of her efforts, although if we ever do this again, I'll volunteer to help with the food. My aunt did a lovely job with the Saturday midday meal, which was a pitch=in with a theme of family meals from the past (think layered salad, Jello salad, and "Next Best Thing to Robert Redford" for dessert), but my cousin probably could have used more help with the menu for the Friday night dinner. My sister who lives closer to her and hosted the Friday night dinner, had just had her knee replaced, so she couldn't do much cooking. I end up running to the store to get salad ingredients and good bread to go with the spaghetti and meat sauce my cousin made.
Out of time for the evening - hoping to reminisce some more about exploring our town with our guest student from France.
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