Summer Salon

Food and zaniness.  Laughter and appreciation.  Friends and families...We hosted what we called the Spring Salon back in April, and it felt like time to do it again...

Eliza drew with henna as people arrived...

It was hot, but we persevered...

We had acrobatic apple trees...english madrigals (that would be from the hosts. our kind audience let us perform it twice, to get it right...!!)...a bell choir...

...a cooking demonstration, making lemon frosting for a ginger peach cake...

 ...an original skit about guitars and space cowboys from the future...

...and about then my camera's battery died (bad timing!), but there was more singing from our family - Eliza and I sang Winter's Come and Gone, I played guitar and Dan played mandolin - and Eliza told the story of The Three Golden Apples, complete with storyboard pictures.  She was amazing! She hadn't wanted to practice beforehand, and I just trusted her instincts about it - she was so excited to share the story, and she was just so poised and funny and clear...I was really proud of her.  It held everyone's attention, even getting some kids to flop down closer on the floor, whispering to each other "I think that old woman she's talking about is a witch".  It was awesome.  The performances drew to a close with our friend Sam's "Salon in a Bag" that he supposedly picked up at CVS - think jester, juggler, joker rolled into one...

I love what people bring to these evenings. Incredible food, a bit of excited nerves, and so much good will and talent...I feel like I'm getting to see beyond the daily workings of our friends and into some amazing pockets of creativity and sparkle...