Things to Remember From July

Our Escape From NY pizza date that left both of us full with a taste of our hometown 'za.
The hummingbird that would visit daily and find stillness on the power line outside our kitchen window.
The scent of fresh rain on pavement.
The joy of walking out of a record store with all the vinyl we were hoping to find, and the cashier giving us a discount because we bought so much.
New (to us) breweries; drinking beer on patios on overcast days.
Live cello music across from work on First Thursday.
Sitting down for proper tea service at The Japanese Gardens.
The serenity of the Japanese Gardens.
Eating Peruvian food and being instantly brought back to that year in college when I worked at a Peruvian restaurant.
Waiting for an old friend at the train station and the giant hug and hand holding that ensued.
Friends grilling, eating, and playing piano together.
All the best 90s hits playing on the radio at work.
Two crows snacking on forgotten tortilla chips in an empty abandoned lot.
The squirrels at Bullards Beach and how cute and tiny and dark they were.
My feet in the sand.
The vast landscapes of this beautiful state I’m so happy to call home.
The smell of the ocean.
Waking up to birds cackling at each other; it sounded like laughter.
The hammock: my happy place.
Camp fires crackling.
Chipmunks having a curious little dance party around our campsite.
Steller’s jays and how they look like bird executioners.
The magic of the redwoods. The big ones, the small ones, the clovers underneath. All of it.
Reading The Little Prince in English as an adult and remembering it in French as a child.
Ruminating about matters of consequence.
The smell of campfire in my clothes and hair, even days after washing it.
That first shower after sleeping in the dirt for four nights.
Seeing a forest fire from the highway and the smoke that ensued for miles.
Laying a sleeping bag down across a plastic mattress in a wooden cabin and resting our tired heads.
The feeling of coming home after a week away.
Falling asleep and rising with the sun.
Picking string beans at the store.
Eating string beans.
The anticipation and excitement and joy of a new tattoo.
Slowing down.