The long-anticipated cold front arrived on Friday night, bringing gloriously cool temps and low humidity throughout the remainder of the weekend. It also provided a welcome relief from the stresses of the week, which included Jon’s grand jury service, a nonfunctioning refrigerator, spoiled food, a new fridge delivered and returned and replaced, and the typical pressures from our jobs.

On Saturday, after calling Jon’s mom to sing her “Happy Birthday,” Cliff said to Jon, “We don’t look up enough. We spend so much time looking down at our handheld devices and computers, and we’re just generally downcast. The world is so different when we gaze upward! If we spend time looking at the clouds, the stars, or just the blue sky, we’ll begin to feel more uplifted.” And so we did. The task was made easier by the glorious weather.

In fact, the weather was so perfect that we spent the entire day outside, from the time we awoke until the time we went to bed. Throughout the day, we delighted in woodland creatures and a crackling campfire. Cliff smoked some ribs for dinner, which included baked potato, broccolini and shishito peppers.

Sunday morning found us back outside, enjoying a crystal clear sky–the same kind of morning that brought such shock and grief to the world 15 years ago on September 11.

So, while we were appreciative of so much natural beauty that surrounded our weekend, we also reflected on all that was lost on 9/11. Such a solemn anniversary demanded that we both remember and give thanks. We remembered the bravery, the unity, and the selfless generosiy of so many Americans at that time. And we gave thanks for the courage, sacrifice, and resilience that made it possible for us to once again look skyward and feel uplifted.