Greetings!
"And so with the sunshine and the great burst of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning once again with the summer."
~ F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
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For me, the month of July signals not only the beginning of summer, but also holidays and travel. After 18 months of pandemic life, the idea of travel is something most of us yearn for, even if it's just a short car trip.
As a child growing up on the East Coast, I knew that the month of July signaled the beginning of summer camp. My parents chose beautiful camps in Long Island, the Catskills, and the Carolinas for me to attend. It was during summer camp that I developed my love of nature. There was also something so easy and simple about camp life. You left your parents for the summer, with all of your important belongings that fit into a big black trunk often stored at the end of your twin camp bed. Although everything else in the cabin was for sharing, the was your trunk, full of your important treasures.
Summer camp and summertime offered more of an opportunity for writing. When I was away, I wrote letters to loved ones back home. From an early age, I always had a journal, and as the first one awake in my cabin, I'd sit with my flashlight writing down my thoughts. The habits begun during childhood are often carried with us for the rest of our lives.
Another habit from my childhood was reading voraciously. Each week my mother drove me to the local public library, and I'd leave with a stack of books piled all the way up to my chin. I also loved magazines. When I finished reading them, I remember cutting out my favorite articles and placing them in a folder to be read again at a later date. In fact, I still maintain this habit. With this memory in mind, I'm starting a new section of my newsletter where I share some articles I've read during the previous month that moved or inspired me. This section is called "July Inspirations." I hope you'll also enjoy them.
Please let me know your thoughts1
Be well. Be safe.
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