Soak up the Summer

This weekend my daughter and I headed out for a Summer adventure with two of our best friends…because it’s Summer!!!

I mean, really, life is so beautiful and precious and amazing and our girls are growing up so fast…and right now, in the midst of Summer, is the time…to escape onto windy mountain roads…revel in the abundance of the cherry harvest…dive into cold flowing rivers…and run through a sudden afternoon downpour back to the safety and warmth of the car. So we did it!

We drove West, through the canyons and mountains of Colorado, letting our cute little town and the high alpine desert fade in the rearview mirror as we headed into the relative ecological diversity of the San Juans. Snaky rivers and happy cows meandered through grassy fields as we came up through Gunnison and Crested Butte. People relaxed on their porches with friends, rode their bikes through the sweet mountain towns and played games in the ball fields, soaking up the beauty of a summertime Friday afternoon.

Out of Crested Butte we went up Kebler pass, heading deep into the high alpine aspengroves where a huge herd of sheep roam free and wild flowers speckle the roadside. It was wet and luscious up there. A wild mountain paradise!

The long and windy descent lead us to our destination…into the town of Paonia…for a weekend of fine art and cherries. Paonia is the fruit mecca of the Colorado Rockies and the cherries are going off.

As a happy coincidence, an old highschool friend of mine…Hillary Emerson Lay…whom I hadn’t seen for about 15 years, was having an art show! yay!! So, we started out the weekend by surprising her and totally freaking her out…the show was gorgeous and it was awesome to see her.

Then, after a night of sleeping on the sweet summer earth, we dove right into the abundance and glory of fresh ripe fruit. It’s cherry season and the orchards are FULL of the most orgasmically delicious sweet juicy fresh cherries you could imagine. It’s like way better than Christmas…tree after tree after tree, loaded down with red juicy YUMMINESS.

We grabbed some baskets and headed out into the orchard, wide-eyed and wonderstruck. There were harvesting ladders to climb but I just wanted to be IN the tree, so I climbed and climbed until there was nothing but leaves and cherries all around me, held by the tree, embraced in her generosity.

 

As I reached out my hands to fill my basket with soft cherries I was overcome with gratitude for the gift of life…for scent, taste, sensation, fulfillment, inspiration…for the abundance and generosity of the natural world…for our ability to receive support, love and nourishment.

With each handful of cherries I gave thanks… “Thank you…thank you…thank you…” is all that was running through my mind…what else is there at the height of Summer when you’re sitting in a cherry tree?

Over forty pounds of fresh ripe juicy cherries, four very happy girls and a deliriously ecstatic sock critter, made by Hillary Emerson Lay
(check out her Etsy page if you want one for yourself)

 

PS…I got 17 pounds of cherries (OMG!! I just couldn’t stop) and I’m working on getting them pitted and frozen so they keep. When I stop just eating them whole and start making dishes and desserts with them I’ll be sure to post some recipes…so stay tuned. 

Radiant Balance Holstic HealthYou’re invited to schedule a Personal Strategy Session with me to receive loving guidance and practical support for your personal transformation and holistic wellbeing. Jo delAmor, Personal Transformation Coach.

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