In my Values exploration, Community happens to be today’s value, and interestingly the whole day was spent in community. I could have as easily titled this post Graduates, because that’s the community I largely spent the day with: in the morning on zoom with the bimonthly gathering of graduates from the Mindfulness Foundations course I teach, in the afternoon with a small class in their last session, and dinner with two of those new graduates and two earlier graduates.

Or I could have titled it Courage, which is what it took for me to accept an invitation to go out to dinner at a restaurant for the first time since Covid lockdown. Or, I could have called it Best Cocktail Ever, which is what this extraordinary French Aviator is, in my humble opinion. The fragrance alone was intoxicating, and I savored every sip of the drink. And I learned some new things to do with lilac blossoms next season, including freezing them into ice cubes. They must have a mammoth stash of lilac ice cubes to still be serving them this long after lilac season.

I’m grateful I spent the day in community, and capped it with a delicious plein-air meal at Mesa Winds Winery. With our cocktails we split a couple of appetizers, whipped feta with apricots, and chicken liver paté. The special was salmon cakes with pineapple slaw, and for dessert we split two other kinds of cake: cherry ricotta, and chocolate mousse. I’m grateful for the kindness and respect of my friends, for their good cheer and good will. And I’m grateful for their acknowledgment of me as a teacher, and for seeing the benefits of mindfulness ripple out in all of our lives.