life in san ramon

We spent the fall in northern California. We had secured housing but were unable to move in right away, so for a few weeks we stayed at Amma's ashram. The conditions of our house at the ashram were somewhat rustic, but I loved it. It was so beautiful there walking on the expansive grounds, sharing meals with residents, eating fresh plums and apples from the orchard, attending talks and programs by the swami, and yoga classes with some ladies. Shawn started school at a huge high school in a nearby town with over two thousand kids. It was a big change for him. He loved caring for the resident kitty, and learned to shoo away the raccoons that would visit our back porch.

end of summer, 2017

me in front of my childhood home

Our last days of summer were spent visiting my parents in upstate New York, picking up Annabel in NYC after a month long trip to Nepal, picking up Shawn after five weeks at camp in Pennsylvania, and seeing him perform music and on the trapeze. The we went to Chicago and spent time with both of my brothers and their families, and Annabel and Shawn went on retreat with AYUDH, an international youth organization that focuses on many service projects around the world.