HOT WEATHER
is upon us. Henry is communing with our high tech air conditioning system: a fan. I have friends coming to stay from San Diego (land of the perfect climate) and I pity them in advance.

CLOUDS IN BONDAGE
The skies have been truly remarkable lately, due to unsettled weather conditions. While Paul was driving us somewhere the other day, I could see the shifting patterns of light and shadow on the road. We paused at a stop sign and I basically just stuck the camera out of the window and pointed up. This is what I got, and this scene seems very symbolic to me of life's struggle and joy. Or else not. At least, you could just say it is pretty!

INFECTIOUS ENTHUSIASM
Four of us (minus the camp-going son) recently visited the Smithsonian Museum of American History in Washington D.C. At first we were reluctant to bring Henry along, museums are often a bore or else a sensory overload for him, making it torturous for us. So the plan was for me to stay poolside with him, while Paul and H did the museum visit. But then we realized the Folk Life Festival was happening on the Mall, right outside the museum and we decided we would all go into the city and I could wander the food booths and live music venues with Henry . (Live music is one of Henry's favorite things on earth.) Constant adaptation and flexibility is one lesson we are continually having drummed into us by our zen master, Henry!

However, even our modifed plan was modified when we pulled up in front of the museum, planning to split up, and Henry charged towards the museum entrance, giggling merrily. "OK", we said to each other, a little grimly, "We'll try it." And, actually, it went beautifully! The museum has changed dramatically since I was there as a kid, and all for the better. Henry loved wandering through the place and looking at the attractive displays. He seemed delighted with everything, and his enthusiasm was infectous. He was as interested in the way the exhibits were lit as he was in the exhibits, often staring up, transfixed by the constellations of lights overhead. And when you stop and look, they ARE very interesting, and obviously a lot of thought and design expertise has gone into this aspect of a show, and it is something I never think about otherwise. We did get some funny looks from people wondering why Henry was smiling delightedly at the ceiling but I noticed that sometimes these folks would glance up too, and then they'd say "Well, would you look at that!"

OLD AND NEW
I came downstairs this morning to find my oldest digital camera and my latest digital camera nestling up to each other. No idea how they got like this, so I guess toys DO move around in the night as children have long suspected. It was so sweet that I had to take a picture (with my "inbetween" digital camera.) The purple plastic argus was a gift from my older brother Bruce, who gave it to me saying, "Here, I think you should do a photo blog." My response was, "What's a blog?" Of course that was almost three years ago. Seems like a distant lifetime.
P.S. Happy Birthday Bruce!

A BEAUTIFUL MOMENT
This morning a friend was telling me about how she equates the concept of Beauty with an idyllic summer she spent many years ago, working and living in a seaside community. We didn't have time to delve deeper, but I think she was speaking about the totality of the experience on every level, as well as just the physical beauty of her environment. A sustained experience of harmony, or flow, or ch'i. Let's just call it beauty.

Beauty before me, I walk with.
Beauty behind me, I walk with.
Beauty above me, I walk with.
Beauty below me, I walk with.
Beauty all around me, I walk with.

-Navajo Night Chant

SUMMER CAMP
We took oldest son P down a few states to summer camp last weekend. His first time at sleepaway camp. He did all the research, showed us the website and practically guided our hands to sign the application forms he had downloaded! I guess he really wanted a break. And once I saw the camp I wanted a break too! It looked so nice. This camp tries to foster international understanding by having one of the two counselors for each bunk come from another country. They fly that counselor's flag in front of each bunk, and in P's bunk the co-counselor is from Australia. I saw British, Danish and Turkish flags on the bunks nearby, and we were only in the 12 year old boy section!

Seeing the beautiful camp grounds and looking at the schedule full of fun activities and relaxation opportunities, made me wish there was a family camp program for families like ours that includes someone with cognitive disabilities. It would have lots of therapeutic support staff on hand and also certain scheduled programs for the special kids. That way the family could both have a little respite, and also some fun, worry-free times all together. What a fantasy, huh?

GLORIOUS FOURTH
and a merry smokebomb to all!

SUMMER HUNTER
My friend Kelly shared her time share at Lake Harmony with us last weekend. Here is son H, showing off his prowess as a mighty hunter of pollywogs: bare-handed even! For this doughty four year old boy, happiness is a fat tadpole.

A DRINK
It feels strange to be watering the porch plants while our area has gotten so much rain lately! Not one mile away a neighborhood on the river has been evacuated. Well, at least I am using recycled rain water. No, we don't have a high tech used-water filtering system or even a rain barrel. But the blue plastic baby pool on our lawn has filled up like a reservoir and it's easy enough to dip the watering can.

HOSPITAL SCAPE
A few weeks ago I was deep in South Philly and I happened to notice this scene. Very Charles Sheeler-like! The friend I was visiting told me it is the back side of Methodist Hospital. I was impressed by how clean and tidy it was, not usually the case for large city institutions, where there is often a pristine front and a trashy back.