Bring On the Happy

{Kindred spirits by the Duck Pond in Boston}

Having soul-inspiring people in your life is one of the most important gifts you can receive. This past weekend, one of my very best friends, Jenn, visited from Washington D.C. Jenn is one of the kindest, most soulful and intelligent people that I have the privilege to know. Some people bring out the brightest, happiest sides of me and Jenn is at the very top of that list!

Her Boston visit saw a sultry couple of days in the city, but we had a grand time strolling around, checking out the Fanueil Hall area, the Boston Commons, the South End, and also, many of the area universities including Boston College (my Alma Mater), Boston University, and Harvard University. Jenn works in higher education and is looking all over the eastern seaboard for possible job opportunities after she graduates from her masters' program. We also saw 500 Days of Summer, which I highly recommend if you like indie romantic comedies along the lines of Juno or Away We Go. It was a relief to sit in the cool air conditioning and watch a simple, yet provocative mediation on love, relationships, and reading the signs of both. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is so cute and I adore Zooey Deschannel's outfits in this film!

On Monday, I rented a ZipCar (a Volvo S40 - a fun, fuel-efficient car that is one of the smoothest rides I've ever experienced) and we drove out to the little village of Concord, MA, which is one of my favorite places to visit! It was home to philosophers, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, as well as authors, Nathaniel Hawthorne (The Scarlet Letter) and Louisa May Alcott (author of Little Women). We got some delicious pastries at Sally Ann's Bakery and then walked around the village area, looking at the pretty historic homes and enjoying the nice sunshine.

We grabbed lunch to go at the yummy Main Street Cafe and then drove to Walden Pond to enjoy a nice picnic while dipping our toes in the warm lake water. After lunch, we decided that we couldn't visit Walden Pond without taking a dip, so we did! It was so refreshing and peaceful to swim in the same pond on which Henry David Thoreau contemplated his greatest treatise and where the fictional character, Josephine March, once skated with her bosom friend, Laurie. It was a perfect summer moment, allowing my body to gently float along as a fresh summer breeze brushed over me. I had a wonderful long weekend full of good friendship, fun activities, and inspiring conversations. I feel blessed to have such amazing friends!

{Dipping toes in Walden Pond}