On Sunday I was feeling kind of grumpy. The weather was beautiful, a perfect summer day, but I was stuck inside at my desk working. It was good work, work I enjoy doing, but that weather was so nice! However I persevered until late afternoon, when it was time to head over to our friend Pat’s home for dinner. Now Pat and I have been friends for nearly 30 years, and we always love to go to her home. She has a knack for making things beautiful and comfortable, and she is a great cook. We were looking forward to a few hours sitting at the table in her lovely garden, eating and drinking and catching up on conversation. However I was feeling pressured by the work left undone, and I briefly considered canceling our date. But I knew that was a bad idea, and that I needed a break, and also that she had been most likely working hard getting things together for the meal. So I sucked it up, shut down my computer, and got ready to go.

As soon as we arrived I felt better. There was my friend and her beautiful little home and garden. We took a brief stroll around to see what was blooming. Roses! Honeysuckle! Herbs and ferns and hostas all growing with abandon. The birds were chirping. The neighbor’s dog barked. I felt my shoulders loosen up.

We sat down at the outdoor table, the one she rescued from the trash and re-tiled the top. Bright new cushions made the old chairs comfy. We ate too much guacamole and drank iced tea. After a period of time, just when we were getting ready to go into the house and get the dinner out, we heard the loud rumble of a Harley Davidson pulling into the driveway. Pat looked surprised and pleased. She had invited an old friend that we hadn’t seen for over five years, and he said he would stop by “if he could”. She didn’t expect he would actually come, and she didn’t even think to mention to us that she had invited him too. But just in time for dinner, there he was, a little hot from the ride but smiling broadly. Now there were four of us to sit in the garden and eat the good food and catch up on old times. By this point in time I had not forgotten the work, but realized it would be better work if I was more rested and less grumpy while I was doing it. So it was all good.

The long, slow summer evening wound on, and we brought the dinner dishes into the house. Our friend with the Harley had to get going, he was going to stop by and visit his daughter and her boyfriend and see their new puppy. A “wiener dog”, he called it. We laughed as he pulled away.

And then this happened:

Yes, that’s exactly what you think it is. Homemade strawberry shortcake, with piles of organic strawberries from the CSA, fresh whipped cream, and a homemade biscuit-style shortcake. The best dessert on the planet, my absolute favorite thing to eat in the world. Heaven on a plate. All three of us worked on putting it together, and then we carried it out to the table like a trophy. Right before cutting into it, I said “take a picture!”. And Pat did, and she sent it to me. And so, I am sharing it with you.

Happy summer, everyone.