Well, I told Joie that I would be chatty in my blog today and then I spent all day melting in the heat instead. Sorry, Joie!

I was mentioning all my new toys earlier. Well, as much as I like the fancy kitchen toys we got, my favorite gift is the CD that my daddy gave me. It is a recording of himself playing guitar and singing several of the songs that he used to play all the time when I was a child. Many of them are songs he wrote himself and my sister and I helped him write one...The Poky Little Puppy. Some of my strongest and fondest memories are of the parties that my parents and their friends would have. 100+ people, lots of potluck food, a few mind altering substances (legal and otherwise), a big bonfire, skiing or naked volleyball depending on the season and at the end, when only the real die-hards are left - a jam session. Everyone would pull out their guitars and dulcimers and drums or whatever they played and the music would begin. I would usually sit next to my mom with my head on her lap and close my eyes, basking in the circle of love that flowed around the bonfire. My dad played lots of old hippy folk songs and lots of anti-nuke stuff. Joni Mitchell, Buffy St. Marie, Beatles, Steve Goodman, so many that I recognize, but don't know the names to...that is the stuff I grew up on. I learned many things at those parties. If you have a talent, share it. Your closest friends are the ones that stick by you no matter how late it gets. When your parents are busy partying, you can get away with just about anything as long as you don't get caught. And that my Daddy overflowed with love for family, friends and all living things.

Listening to my CD today brought all of that back in a rush. My dad and I are in a rocky, difficult place in our relationship right now. He has done a lot of things that I don't respect, but today I remembered many of the things he has done that I DO respect. Today I was reminded of the love that he has inside, whether he knows it or not. Just listening to some old songs rekindled many desires in me...the desire to play guitar...the desire to teach young children that Love is what it is all about...the desire to keep fighting for that relationship with my Daddy that I miss so much. Thank you, Daddy, for once again finding the perfect gift. I love you.