as summer fades to fall

Fresh coffee with coconut milk creamer? Check.
Bags upstairs that need to be unpacked and then repacked later today for another housesitting gig? Check.
iPhone photos backed up for the first time since June? Check.

Classes start next Monday. My fourth semester of grad school will be underway, with plenty of projects and papers and meetings. I told someone last week that I am progressively less excited for the school year with every passing September. (Think about it. I’ve been in school EVERY year since at least preschool. More than 20 years…) And I love school, I do. But summer’s pretty amazing. Let’s do a short recap of some of this year’s highlights (which were so different from last year’s, but just as meaningful…do I ever live a blessed life…).

Yosemite rocked.
Just before leaving for the Philippines, I managed to sneak up to Yosemite for a day to join my family for the big Matas family camping extravaganza. All of my Dad’s siblings, their kids, and even my grandma…we had so much fun. And the meal my uncle cooked for dinner the night I was there goes down in camp food history. It was amazing. We did some hiking and some campfire and some swimming in the (very cold) Merced River. I dig my family.

There was that trip to the Philippines…
…after which things will never be the same. Not a day goes by that something about the Philippines or Threads of Hope doesn’t sneak into conversation. Saturday’s trip report was wonderful. To see the entire team together again for the first time since arriving back home…there was definitely some fighting back tears. It was such a warm gathering of family and friends.

Mmm…Washington.
The last-minute roadtrip up to Washington, loaded with sweet memories. To have spent the first days of a new relationship in the company of as wonderful a couple as Alex and Chris…the many long-awaited hugs from old friends…the free coffee at Washington rest stops. As the edges around each day blur, I look back on this week with more and more sweetness. It characterized a summer, really.

Family vacation!
Just two days after getting home from Washington, Mom and Dad swung by to pick me up for family vacation. I haven’t been able to go on our yearly vacation to Southern California to stay with Gigi and Aunt Judy in probably three years, so this was a treat. We spent two days in Disneyland, went to my brother’s college graduation, a baby shower for my Dad’s cousin, the beach, and my cousin’s wedding in La Jolla…and that really only covers the major highlights. There were countless moments–like sister snuggling and shrimp tacos and giggling with my aunts–that fill in all the minutes I’ll remember long after summer’s freckles have faded.

There were a few jumps, here and there, and a handful of gym visits, and even my first kayaking outing (which was awesome, by the way)…so those things are still part of my life. Summer’s been pretty great, even if it did scream by at lightspeed. And I’ll admit once school gets going I’ll probably think that’s pretty great too…but that’s just between you and me, mmkay?

How was your summer?