Dispatches from a summer vacation

I am intentionally taking time to check in.

Having laid out my intentions and declared this my ‘summer of writing’ here on Substack, in an effort to create external accountability, it is only fair that I also provide a status report of sorts. Here it goes.

The early weeks of summer vacation vanished and before I knew it we were on a plane headed east. The boys and I traditionally spend a few weeks in Cape Breton every July/August. It is peak summer.

If you are looking for the perfect beach vacation, ‘Think Cape Breton First’ (ifyky). PEI minus Anne of Green Gables and Martha’s Vineyard minus the millionaires. Idyllic.

This is the view from my parent’s screen room.

I mean.

My husband hadn’t been to Cape Breton since 2019, those sweet pre-pandemic times.

Our kids were excited to show him their favourite things, where to catch the biggest frogs, the spot in the rocks where you can crawl under the dock at low tide, the secret beach full of hermit crabs.

His parents were excited to see that he was still alive. He was excited to eat all the food!

Now, my husband and I are back home in the Yukon. Our kids are living their best life; summer with their grandparents. I hold a special place in my heart for my grandmother. I love that I can give my kids and my parents time to build their relationships.

We are all having our own summer adventures. I think that is a little bit magical.

With respect to the main themes of this Substack, here is a breakdown of the past few weeks:

Jiujitsu:

I dropped in to a gym for one class while in Cape Breton. Most days I opted to get some movement by walking or running the dirt road along the Bras d’Or Lake.

Perimenopause:

Mostly uneventful. I did have one terrible case of brain fog. I misremembered which day we were flying back to the Yukon and planned a beach day that we had to cancel. We flew out that day instead. Luckily it was a foggy day so we didn’t mourn the beach too much.

Writing:

I read a few novels. Light summer romances.

Reading is an important part of the writing process. As Stephan King says in his memoir On Writing “If you don’t have the time to read, you don’t have the time or tools to write.”

I started a guided slow read of Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird with Sarah and Liz of the Happier in Hollywood Substack and podcast. This week we had an assignment to write a ‘one inch frame memory from your own life’. I wrote a piece about my husband. A shitty first draft. Then a second draft. And then the greatest challenge, I finished a final draft of the small assignment. To have a finished product is a satisfying feeling. I am proud of that final draft. It is just a page. A poem really. It is well written with solid timing and pacing. And it’s true…which Anne Lamott touts as an essential element of writing.

I am in week 3 of the 12 week course, Following the Artist’s Way. Part of this requires Morning Pages and Artist Dates as detailed in the book. Morning pages are challenging in the way that workout is challenging. I need to trust the process because growth is often uncomfortable. The Artist Dates have been unexpectedly delightful. I have a growing list that I am looking forward to working through. This program has an added layer; weekly Zoom meetings and What’s App check in groups. I feel buoyed by the sense of community with these other women.

In novel news, I am clicking along. Upping the word count everyday. The story ideas swirl around in my mind, and I am swinging a butterfly net trying to capture it all.

My intention for the next few weeks - let July be July.

Let July be July.
Let August be August.
And let yourself

just be
even in
the uncertainty.
You don’t have to fix
everything.
You don’t have solve
everything.
And you can still
find peace
and grow
in the wild
of changing things.

- Morgan Harper Nichols