It has been 42 days since my last post. Forty-two Days! How can so much time go by so quickly? What has happened in these waning days of summer? How have I changed? Has anyone been disappointed by my absence? Is anyone still checking this blog? What have the past six weeks been like? Here's a summary. 
A fantastic week at South Bethany Beach in Mid-August with spouse, 5 children, 2 son-in-laws, 1 daughter-in-law, and 4 grand children.
Morning walks with grandson, afternoons with the family on the beach, and evening adventures. 
Another week of vacation at a friends' camp on the shores of Hunt Lake in the Adirondacks. Just Mary and I. Daughter and family housesitting next door. Solitude. Quiet reading. Paddling a canoe across the mirror like surface of the lake in the early morning. Daily walks. Beautiful sunsets. Helped grandson Jacob catch his first fish.Quick trip to Vermont to see grandson Noah and his parents.August 29th. Back to work. E-mails, phone messages, deadlines. Hospital visits. Rally Day! Hosted picnic for 125+ people. A back yard wedding, with accompanying thunderstorm. Three baptisms. Funeral of a beloved parishioner and friend, age 60. Cardiologist warns that my schedule must be kept under control. More medical tests ordered. Sonny and Cher got it right.The beat goes on, the beat goes on. Drums keep pounding a rhythm to the brain. La de da de de, la de da de da.
With 5 children and 4 grandchildren, it seems as if we are always celebrating birthdays. Cake, ice cream, and gifts. The lights are turned down, the candles lit, and we all sing a slightly off key version of the birthday classic. For the children, the candles represent an achievement. Finally, I'm two or twelve or 14. With each year comes new freedom and new responsibility.
For the adults, it's different, isn't it? The candles symbolize the past rather then the future. For Mary and I, past 60 now, we gave up putting an accurate number of candles on the the cake long ago. As we age, birthdays become a reminder of how many years have gone by, how fleeting life is, how precious the time. The best thing about birthdays, no matter what the age, is that it is recognized and celebrated. Birthdays are an excuse to get together, to indulge in sweets, to laugh together. So keep the birthdays coming. I like cake!
