September 6, 2022

The last hot days of August faded into memory. Only to be welcomed by the first days of an unseasonably warm September.

What a summer it has been.

A summer free of restriction and smoke. Free of fear and the threat of impending doom – mostly.

It was a glorious end to a summer of resurrection. Despite the media’s cries of recession and war – my life has been filled with promise, with hope.

The last Monday of August was a grand celebration; I saw a concert that filled my soul with music and joy. I took some wonderful people out on the lake and savoured the heat of late summer moments.

In the middle of it, all the smoke returned to darken our world. But then the sun returned to the valley.

The only regret I felt was the lack of time. Time for my wife, my daughter, and my writing seems to be fleeting in the heat of the day. Time is so precious I grasp for it, and it escapes like wisps of smoke in the air.

But lately, things have been “coming up Cal”, as my guests on the boat said to me. We booked our trip to San Diego to watch The Pretty Reckless play a headline show at the House Of Blues. What a great show it will be.

But how to pay for it all?

Life started to come up with the answers I sought. First, it was an extra two people and two hours on my Saturday boat tour. That paid for the hotel. Then like a gift from the stars, I found someone to rent my condo at Big White for the two months before winter. Boom, the trip was paid for and stress oozed off me like water cascading under the bow of my boat.

Sometimes things just work out – sometimes they don’t. Like when I stood in line at the bank looking to change some Canadian cash for American, and the guy in line next to me wanted to change American for Canadian. After a quick conversation and help from the teller and we both saved enough money so we could buy a couple of beers with the money we earned in exchange rates.

Sometimes things come up Cal…

In my life, I have learned to appreciate those moments. Because sometimes things do not go my way and I struggle to make the end of a day, of a week. I have also learned not to get too greedy with good fortune and to take every moment and savour it.

Because we never know when it will all go wrong again.

I am now sitting on a plane on my way to sunny California to see my favourite band perform, and enjoy the salt air of San Diego.

From one heat wave to another. One paradise to another.

I look forward to what tomorrow will bring.