Heating up

The rain that I have waited for came last evening.  A good soaking rain to refresh the vegetation and wet the earth on the dirt road.  A good southern thunderstorm that turned the horizon dark, followed by wind, thunder, lightening, and finally rain.

We had just finished up trimming box woods and working in the garden.  It felt good to get soaked to the skin.  The heat has been oppressive for the past week.  I have begun riding very early in the morning or after sunset in the evening.  And then I only ride for about 45 minutes because we are both soaked by then.

I find the best part of being with my horse is giving him a bath.  He likes to hold the hose in his mouth while I gently put pressure on the nozzle to give him water. He is quite a character, and we get along well.

C. and I went on a tomato picking excursion and came home with three 10 gal buckets filled.  We proceeded to make marinara sauce with large bubbling pots cooking on the stove. It took us all day to process the tomatoes into sauce. We froze the sauce and will no doubt appreciate it this winter.

So many tomatoes and a lot were already rotting on the ground. 

Our picking within 30 minutes

Love that "pales" were $5

Lots of tomatoes to process

I couldn't help but think as we were picking those tomatoes that the ones rotting on the ground would feed a lot of people.  It is a shame to see them go to waste. I wish that farmers would consider having a sale price for picking or maybe a free day so that produce would be used instead of wasted.

I have gone to two meetings with the unity Courage Campaign group that is trying to get people talking to each other who are from different backgrounds. So far, we have just been talking to those of similar attitudes.  I honestly don't see how we are going to get those who have opposing ideas to get together using the lunch format.  So I am going to organize a pot luck dinner out on the island at the Community Center. Hopefully, we will be able to have more thought provoking discussions by stepping out of our comfort zone.

And about talking --- The KKK and the New Black Panthers had a rumble in the state capitol on Saturday.  Several people were injured.  Lots of screaming and hurling of racial epithets. Some columnists say that we are headed for a race war. I certainly hope not, but there is a great deal of unrest.   I did not go to the rally because  I don't think much good would come from standing out in the heat being caught between two groups of people who intensely dislike each other.  Heat and dislike are bad combinations.

I have been jogging again on our country road.  Each way is a mile so I get 2 miles in each evening.  It isn't a great distance at all, but between riding and working out at the gym, I stay in good physical shape.  I enjoy the physical challenge, although Aleve liquid gels have become a daily friend to me.

The road to home.

 Hope that you all are doing well.  Looks like the entire country is in a heat wave. Stay cool.

Sunflower field near our house. 

Healing the soul

I am out on the boat today. It is a beautiful day. I am grateful to be here--to walk on the beach, swim, enjoy the sunrise and ocean breeze.

I talked to J. about her mother. She is wondering what she could have done to prevent the suicide. I am sorry that she is feeling so responsible for something that was beyond her control. I had a lot of "what if" thoughts after my father died suddenly. A suicide is different though. The long term effects of such a devastating tragedy are hard to know.

I appreciate your comments and thoughts. I have not lived through such a tragedy. My frame of reference is limited. We will do what we can to help her out.

And even I wonder whether a person who is in so much pain would not benefit from a day like today on the water. Nature is healing. I discovered a few years ago that there are places to go that can help heal whatever wounds have occurred. My spirit is content, my being peaceful.