The month, June, has staged an upheaval of my emotions.
Like its’ weather—June gloom and summertime sunshine—my emotions vacillated. Shock, sorrow, joy, surprise, giddiness. And I didn’t even go to Belmont Park to hop on the roller coaster.

Early in June, along with throngs of those who adore her, my close friend’s dreadful diagnosis stunned us all. Her spirit and courage in the face of the news inspires us all.
In Dallas, my first true love passed away. I am surprised by how sad the news made me feel. After all these years, the memories of his (our) youthfulness and innocence flooded through my head and heart. I found myself thinking about who I would put on a list of most important or influential people in my life, and my high school sweetheart would be at the top of the list. ***
I am saddened that I never let him know that.
In the midst of June’s heartache and nostalgia, along comes a tall, lanky, sweetheart of a kid—fifteen (almost sixteen)-year-old Cash visiting from North Carolina. Seeing the southern California summertime vacation days through the eyes, ears, and stomach of this growing boy makes me giddy.

Hard to believe how much he eats.
How savvy he is.
How compassionate he is.
How darn much fun it is to have him around.
And then there was June’s full moon—the Strawberry Moon—whose name originated from Native American Algonquian tribes, as well as from the Ojibwe, Dakota, and Lakota peoples, who referenced “the ripening of ‘June-bearing’s strawberries ready to be gathered.”
I gathered my own strawberries this morning, sliced them, and put them on top of peanut-butter toast—yum!
For us, the full moon of June arrived late; I kept leaving the Padre game telecast to check for its appearance. Finally, just after nine o’clock, it appeared low in the sky with an orange-red hue to it leaving the night sky largely black and ushering in the summer season officially on the solstice.
Immediately, we fast-forwarded through the game pausing for each one of Jake Cronenworth’s five hits which led the Padres to victory and headed to the moonlight.
But not before we poured a nightcap of two small glasses of port and put the last of Connie’s over-the-moon cookies on a plate which we transported up the stairs and settled ourselves on the balcony for the moon’s spectacular display.
Sheer joy.
It’s the last week of June, and I’m bracing myself for any more roller coaster rides.
But also, looking forward to good things this summer.
“I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer,”
Fitzgerald in The Great Gatsby
***I wrote about my high school sweetheart in a piece titled “Thirtieth Reunion” which was published in Shaking the Tree Anthology, Volume 2; it features “brazen, short, memoir” pieces about “thing we don’t talk about.”
I did talk about it and you can read my story and other compelling true stories in the small book available here.
And as long as you’re at it, if you’re looking for summertime reads, check out my books, also available on Amazon!

and...

If you do read either of my books, I'd love to hear from you. And if you're book club would be interested in reading and talking about either, I'd also love to make that happen! Just send me a message!
Oh, Marilyn yes. The roller coaster of June's emotions. I'm sorry to hear the news of your friend's diagnosis. My dearest friend has just experienced the same. And, of course, the loss of that first love. I'm glad for grandkids and full moons and having a night cap with a sweetheart on the balcony. Now comes July. Are you ready for the fireworks?