Rebekah Suzanne Jenkins

We’re in California for the birth of our granddaughter. (I will write about her in a blog post soon.) One of the things I like about visiting a new place is finding a grocery store. I hate grocery shopping in the giant stores so prevalent, so a little, local IGA or Spartan store or mom and pop are preferable.

Yesterday, we found a small store near my son’s house in La Jolla and I had a field day. They have a small bakery and a wonderful fresh fruit and veggie department. But what really made me happy was finding my guilty pleasure; Vanilla Cinnamon coffee creamer. I had a basket full of healthy stuff and on top of it all, next to the Acai juice and the carrots, this chemical creamer.

This morning, I made myself coffee and the smell of the creamer has transported me back to New Jersey, to the house where we raised our two children. It’s early morning, and the heat is on, radiators humming along, and I’m standing at the counter with a cup of coffee. First, my son comes down the stairs, handsome, fresh out of the shower, and a few moments later, my daughter, beautiful and smiling. They head out to school together, and before I know it, I’m sixty-three years old, they live on opposite ends of the country, and coffee creamer is making me sad.

It’s fall. It might be eighty degrees and still August, but before we know it, we’ll have the heat on at night in our RV, and by the time we get back to Michigan, our sheep will have grown their wool out again, and the leaves will be gold and red.

Enjoy every second of your life.

Love,

Suzanne