Several weeks of helping our
daughter with her family in Arizona – not my wife’s original idea of summer
vacation from school teaching – turned out to be a joy, hard work, and a hot time in the new
town alright. Although Anthem is often
over 100 degrees during the summer, we were fortunate to see the beginning of
the cloudy monsoon season, with daytime temperatures sometimes dipping below
100 – so cool (loved the cloud patterns.)
Getting better acquainted with four grandchildren
(including a fun ten-year-old helper from SLC), being
amazed by unstoppable-grandma Kay's taking care of every need, early-morning
wake-up calls (my favorite time of day), quiet walks around the block with a
happy baby boy, picnic in the duck park, family home evenings well organized by
devoted young parents, word games I never win, great cooking, all-you-can-drink
ice water, community pool, friendly neighbors, church meetings in a wonderful ward, a new temple soon to be open, freedom
from yard work, and (last but not least:) lively, artistic, gorgeous little
girls!
After all that, for which I
am grateful, this thought came to me on the way back to Utah: there’s no place like home.
And hey! – summer is only half over! More fun!
And hey! – summer is only half over! More fun!
Part 2 – just for future reference to remind myself before traveling:
Without
mentioning what's missing at my favorite old motel in Kanab, Redrock Country
Inn, I can think of a few things about home that I appreciate more now:
Food
in the fridge that I can heat in the microwave.
Vent
fan in bathroom; 2nd bathroom for myself.
Quiet
room away from noisy fridge.
VCR,
VHS tapes, and old radio.
Secure
WiFi network.
Care-free
walking barefoot on carpet.
Plenty
of electrical outlets with ground (3-prong).
My
own kitchen cupboard for reusing items not ready for dishwasher or recycler.
An
old-fashion way of turning off a noisy A/C (unlike the remote I discovered
next morning on the motel desk.)
A
place for everything, and everything in its place; no need to pack bags, load car, unload car, and unpack bags every day.
