summer

 

New Perspective on the Familiar

 

A little dose of the Big Apple

 

Greetings from Asbury Park

 

Luca + Lauren

 

Ninety - Take Two

NINETY

Today Providence Maria Ferrante Grasso turned 90. 

"It's just a number," she says although acknowledging an unfathomable one.

In 1931, her first cries bellowed through an apartment on Mott Street,

heard by her older sister, Francis.

Weighing in at 11 pounds this could not have been an easy birth for her mother. 

 

At 99 pounds she is a spitfire;

 blessed with a sound mind, strong body and love.

Her friends far outnumber her years.

The phone rang all day, birthday cards lined the mantel and bright bouquets were delivered.

Today we celebrated with some of her dearest friends; 

women who have been in her life for sixty plus years.

I too am blessed to still have my mother to call on the phone and hold tight.

She is an inspiration.  

I'm in awe of her ability to cope with life's curve balls

like the pandemic which kept her relatively isolated for sixteen months.

She continues to evolve, grow and change when need be.

Her goal is to live to 100, as long as she is able to maintain independence

and a desirable quality of life.

May her birthday wish come true.  

Rain

 The hypnotic sound of rain on a warm summer night. 

Princeton

Only nine miles south from the suburban development where I grew up,

Princeton was always a sought after destination.

From a young age I was enchanted by the 17th century farmhouses, wild English gardens

and quaint town center.

New Jersey has welcomed us with low humidity and pleasantly warm days,

idyll for strolling down Witherspoon, 

crossing Nassau and entering the wrought iron gates of the university. 

Although the storefronts house more brand name retail outlets, on the surface,

the charming college town remains untainted from the propulsion of modern life. 

The campus is still the most impressive I've ever encountered

with its gothic spires, ivy covered facades, and modern sculptures.

After a seventeen year slumber the cicadas

have emerged in droves providing a summer soundtrack.

They occasionally landed on us as we walked the cobblestone pathways to Prospect Garden.

How lucky am I that mother's health, on the last day of her 89th year,

continues to be in top form.

We reminisce about the years she worked at Bamberger's, 

our visits to the hospital where her mother took her last breath, and the chapel 

where our high school graduations were held.

Her memory remains sharp, her stamina can STILL make me feel like a sloth

and her mobility is outstanding.

I'm blessed.

LAX to EWR!!!!!!

 

Pampered

 After sixteen months without a manicure or pedicure,

 I soaked my hands and feet in warm sudsy water and had my nails filed and polished.

It feels odd to fill the weekend hours with errands and activities which haven't been

possible for over a year.  

I'm moving towards a place that feels both familiar and foreign.