An Autumnal Celebration

When we were in college, we lived in married student housing on campus of CU Boulder. (Go Buffs!) It would be so easy to focus on the hard parts of that time of our lives – having a baby (and then another) without health insurance, living off student loans, hot water radiators in our apartment which kept the temp at 85 degrees whether we wanted it that warm or not, a fire alarm system that went off every time someone used their toaster, living with one (barely working) car. I guess I could go on and on about that stuff but for reals, the good outweighs the other stuff.

Looking back, we actually began having garden parties during our time in Boulder. We would gather our friends (and oh, the friendships that came out of that time!) and decorate the trees in the courtyard with twinkly lights, put tablecloths on card tables, pile deli roast chicken and potatoes on big throw away platters and run an extension cord to our boom box so we had music. One Fall, that guy that I like so much decided to call one such event an ‘Autumnal Celebration’…and oh, how fancy we all felt! Well, as fancy as we could be in our college sweatshirts with our babies in tow.

Part of me misses those times, but then again I think I am just missing garden parties in general. It’s what we do…and we do it well. Feeding others feeds me. Twinkly lights in the garden, music played over wifi, tablecloths and big platters of food. But more than that…it’s the feeling of it all. The excitement when people walk in, the wine is being poured, the quiet conversations that gradually become louder, the laughter, the tears, the look when the food is ready.

I miss the feeling of what an autumnal celebration exudes.

In the meantime, I continue to feed all who live in our little house on our little street. That will do for now. Like others, I am looking forward to the time where this pandemic is all a great story… a ‘remember the time when’ kind of story that is told while sipping cocktails in the garden. We’ll laugh, we’ll cry, we’ll pour more wine and celebrate gathering (close and mask-less) together. =)