What a Weekend

 This past weekend marked my 44th anniversary and my son's 16th anniversary.

Every year (except 2020, naturally) we throw a huge June party, the Deal Summer Celebration, on the third weekend of June. My boys (Jack and my sons Buddy and Jesse) brew a special Celebration Ale, and I hit the kitchens. 

I have some serious game in the kitchen--cooking, that is; rarely cleaning up after. This year, it was a 5-lb. prime rib, a 10-lb. ham, 8 pounds of chicken My-Dear-Sally (which is chicken Marsala made with half Madeira, half Marsala), and 10 pounds firecracker candy ribs. Some years it's 10 pounds of garlic wings; other years, it's meatballs. I also make a bean salsa from my Healthy Weigh course, and a chili con queso that is exquisite. Most years, I also make my C3PO dip, but we weren't sure how many folks would be coming out of their COVID shells.

As it turned out, we had quite a crowd, near 50. More were expected, but the forecast scared them off, and as it turned out, it did sprinkle a little, but my yard is well sheltered and no one got soaked. Frankly, I was glad of the little bit of rain on my head because it was so hot and I was so done.

Gerry and the Deals played, and everyone loves their selection of acoustic vocal.

Me, I sat in a chair like a queen, mainly because after all that work, I couldn't move. I had actually deep-cleaned my kitchen for the whole week before the party, and I spent a lot of time pulling weeds--not as much as Jack did, but enough to really hurt my arm and back so I couldn't sleep most nights. Then all the cooking and prep work.

In the middle of it all, I still had computer work to do for church and for eSpec Books. So, in between prepping and shoving things in the oven or into the dishwasher (don't worry, I kept them straight) I was editing videos for worship. I had to learn a new skill for that. And I was piling tweets into Buffer so I wouldn't have to worry about them Saturday or Sunday.

In all of that, I didn't get time for a Sunday noitcelfeR, but trust me when I say God was never far from my mind. I was with friends from church, friends from drum corps, writing friends, our neighbors, friends from high school, my adopted sons and daughters, my grandkids and kids, and my adopted daughter's kid too.

Everyone at that gathering reminded me that God is God, and I want to be like God in all things. I start by feeding a crowd and offering love. They may not know it, but I pray for them as I see them come through the gate, and I thank God for every one of them. I ask God how I can be a blessing to them. 

I may not always succeed in that last. God is God, but I am not. But I try, and with God's grace, I keep trying.