For the record

Here I am trying to dip my toe back into the water. There is so much I have wanted to share, to set down for posterity, but it all flowed by, unrecorded. Maybe I can reconstruct some of it this morning, the air outside clear blue and cool, the sounds of kids singing and laughing at the nursery school downstairs reaching me through the open window.

1. My darling son and his lovely wife celebrated their first anniversary on September 17. Last night, one of his friends from England who is visiting camp this week posted that picture up top. It a view from the lake of the open sided chapel where my boy and his bride said their vows. I stared into that image for a long time, nostalgic for that absolutely charmed day a year ago, when so much love and joy infused everything. 

2. My son also had a birthday on October 4. I posted these pictures on Insta, to celebrate his childhood, and his journey now as a man.

3. My goddaughter Christine also had a birthday on October 1, this time on the other side of the veil. She was stolen from us this past summer, after she and her love were hit by a drunk driver while heading home to Yellowknife, NWT, Canada. Her love survived, and is piecing himself back together. But on the day before Christine's memorial service, fires were bearing down on Yellowknife, and the city had to be evacuated. On her birthday, her sister Nicole posted that photo of them, Christine is on the right. Our beautiful girl, a soul made of pure light. We ache with missing her. She wasn't one for social media, she lived a very private life, but I think she would understand: I just wanted to post her picture.

4. My nephew, Brett Walking Eagle, note down his name, was selected to audition for The Voice this season. He didn't get a chair turn from the judges (honestly, I thought it was the wrong song choice), but I was so chest-popping proud of him anyway. He was nervous and thought he sounded terrible, but my ear isn't that finely tuned, and I thought he was amazing. I also absolutely loved his interview beforehand, loved the way he represented his  Native American and Jamaican heritage. That boy of ours has presence. People were upset that he didn't get a chair turn, enough for someone to write a whole story in the news about it! Happy to say Brett is already back in the studio, working on new music.

5. My daughter went wedding dress shopping with me and two of her cousins on the day that New York was being flooded by an actual monsoon. It was quite the feat getting to the bridal boutique downtown, as subways became flooded, streets were closed, everything washing away. And yet all appointments at the boutique that day were kept, and the woman who helped us was wonderful. Our little band even went out for brunch afterward, a Friday in the city in the middle of the storm, and yet the restaurant was jam packed. It ended up being a magical day, and my girl may have found the dress she wants to get married in. She's musing on it, and will decide this week. Her cousin Leisa in Dallas, who is like her big sister and will be at her side when she says her vows next year, will be her only attendant ("It's too complicated to pick and choose among cousins and friends," my daughter decided). Leisa was supposed to be here in person, but she got covid and couldn't travel to us after all. But she was on FaceTime, and when she saw our girl in her dress and veil, she started sobbing. "You look like a Disney princess," she cried, with four month old Harper in her arms, looking very confused. Speaking of Harper, here she is with her godparents, giving them some practice. My daughter and her love visited Dallas last month to meet their new niece.

6. Also, I accomplished this. Now it's over to the editor and publisher. May it be worthy.