Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. We attend the wedding of two of Rudi’s cycling friends at a former turn-of-the-century amusement park. I don’t know the groom or bride, but can tell that the wedding is very much them.

2. I spend the afternoon picking tart cherries and blueberries at a nearby farm. If I am productive this weekend, there will be pie.

3. After two days in a row spent in large part with strangers, it feels restorative to curl up all afternoon with just the cats, the radio broadcast of the Mets game, my knitting, and various books.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. I’ve harvested peas and strawberries and escarole this week — and seen two other exciting signs: Above is a black swallowtail caterpillar on one of my bronze fennel plants. And below are flowers in my potato patch, which have sprouted to ridiculous heights this year.

2. As I’m already on his side of the river, I text Sergio to see if he’s interested in a drink. (As it’s a Sunday afternoon, I do imagine it might be apple juice in a sippy cup.) He invites me to the playground to hang out with him, his wife, and his young children, and then later back to their place for supper on their balcony, which feels particularly kind.

3. Rebecca invites me to her place, where I get to see her beautiful rainbow bookshelves (it wouldn’t work for me, but I love that it does for her), before we head up to her building’s roof deck for snacks, a panoramic view of the city set to the National Cathedral’s bells, and a fluorescent sunset on an absolutely gorgeous evening.

What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my last week:

1. We knew my parents had a bear, because it had taken down the bird feeder once already this spring. But Sunday morning, my family got to see this mama and baby black bear up close and personal for the first time.

2. Karen and I got to have lunch and a walk and a talk Sunday afternoon. The weather held steady and we were dressed properly, and it was great to catch up.

3. My dad’s doctor’s appointment was over quickly on Tuesday, so they were finishing up just as we were on our way out of town to return home. We met up for ice cream before parting ways for real.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. Katie has a housewarming party, and about a quarter of the volleyball team is able to make it, including Sergio and his family, which means I get to play with a toddler and hold a three-month-old.

2. The first strawberries and salads made only with lettuce from our garden were consumed this week. Plus, there is at least one pod growing amidst the waist-high peas greens, there are half a dozen green chilis, the cucumber is covered with flowers, and the potato greens are knee-high.

3. Rudi’s birthday was Friday, and we celebrated with several of his friends outside at a brewery — just AFTER a torrential rainstorm.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. Despite the cancellation of our kids’ program, the adult leagues go on despite the threat of thunderstorms. Neither rain nor lightning materialize in our vicinity, and we not only get our game in, but also patio time at the local watering hole for drinks and dinner afterwards.

2. A single restroom has been in the works at the park where we play on Saturdays. My pal sent a photo earlier this week without any construction fencing around it, so we are hopeful this will mean it’s open this weekend. (The women, particularly, will be grateful, as the guys just disappear into the wooded verge.)

3. Plenty of rain has fallen this week, which means I haven’t had to trudge water down to my thirsty garden plot. Since the pool adjacent to our community garden opens next weekend, I’m hopeful the water has been turned on, and I won’t have to lug more from home until the fall.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?

Three beautiful things from my past week:

1. Despite a worrying forecast, Saturday turned out to be a lovely day and we stayed out playing until suppertime, when a bunch of us trooped down the hill to the local Tex-Mex joint and then on to a bar for a nightcap. Apparently some of the others kept going until 2 a.m., but I was maxed out on crowds and retired home at 10.

2. Rudi and I went to the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival on Sunday for the first time in several years and got to see herding demonstrations, sheep, and lots and lots of yarn. I’ll save the haul (Rudi is an enabler) to show you another day, but here are a pair of sheep who were happy to say hi.

3. Susan and I had lunch this afternoon. The coffeehouse at the cathedral had a tent up, which meant we could sit outside on a lovely afternoon without fear of her getting burned.

How about you? What’s been beautiful in your world lately?