September Remembered

 

Sunflowers and corn.

Synonymous with September.

Especially September of 2020.

 

 One week after my sister's passing...

Dad passed away peacefully.

 

We had a small graveside ceremony...

just his local children and grandchildren...

great-grandaughter Ranen who played violin...

 and one brother.

It was a special time of remembering someone who lived life to the fullest until the end. 

One day we will be together again.

What a day that will be!

 

Though the Canada / Us border remains closed...

the smoke from the fires in Washington, Oregon and California wafted across freely.

There were many days when we barely saw the sun...

and the mountains were all lost in the haze.

 

 

My rose bush was appropriately named for such a time as this.

'Lady of the Mist'.

And the zinnias were a bright spot on those dreary days.

 

September 11th is a date that is hard to forget...

but with all that was happening over here, it almost slipped by.

 His sister remembered that he had a birthday!

We will do better at celebrating it next year.

Thankful for him and the blessings of this past year.

And then there was our sweet Maggie who had her 12th birthday.

She loves soccer, and long-distance running, and swinging with her sister.

She loves to win at games.

She is kind and cares for those on the sidelines.

 She celebrated with her cousins...

since parties aren't encouraged this year.

 

 

She documented the fun with her birthday gift.

Who knew that Polaroid cameras would be a big hit again one day?

 

 

 We ended the month with a little getaway to the Okanagan Valley...

 

 

Gallagher Lake in Oliver.

 

What a surprise to meet up with good friends at the campground when we arrived!

We cycled the trails together...

 

 ...past vineyards

 

 ...and orchards.

 

 

Up hills and down.

Until we could cycle no more!

What are the chances of us both getting flat tires on our bikes?

His tires are both flat...

despite the 'puncture resistant' label.

My bike has a flat rear tire.

I won't even go into the saga of how that unfolded...

except to say that I sat beside the road waiting to be rescued for a few hours.

Until darkness arrived! 

If you ever cycle in the desert area of our province...

beware of puncture vines!

 

 

As for Gallagher Lake...

we really enjoyed our stay and would love to return one day. 

We stopped in Keremeos to stock up on plums, peaches and nectarines...

known as the fruit capital of Canada for a reason.

Maybe the pumpkin capital too?

As the sun sets on September,

the corn fields of home are ready for harvest.    

October has arrived!