Somehow it's September

For the past six years or so in the third week of August I’ve found myself tired, bearded, fit and sunburnt, saying goodbyes to good friends, after epic adventures into the Canadian wilderness, and also adventures into ourselves. It was always a challenging time, as I packed up my stanky clothes and tried to recognize my growth and learnings, steeling myself for the onslaught of life in civilization, and a much less intentional community.  Somehow August has already passed! The most striking way I was confronted with the end of summer was through facebook as a couple weeks ago came the pictures from the end of second session at Northwaters and Langskib. And now friends have updated statuses to reflect the journeys back to campuses across the country. Those pictures stirred something in me, and it was only then that I really recognized my moving on from NWL. Seeing those snapshots, I missed the beauty of Temagami, having those challenges, that community. But I can recognize that it was a good time to leave. I look back with nostalgia, but not regret. I am grateful for the new adventures and challenges that I have found here. It’s nice not to have the dramatic transitions at the end of the summer, and to have different landmarks to look forward to, like the grape harvest in about a month. I’m coming to the end of Module 5 with the police officers. There have been some heavy rains and the weather has been a little cooler. I got an email from TLG informing me that I would be finishing with the police on September 20^th, and will then start teaching in a school. Summer is coming to an end, but it feels like things for me are only just getting started.