Friends from Tacoma Urban Program all reconvened in Corvallis plus my rad road tripping baby step bro. The light from the flash on the polaroid camera looked similar to the actual eclipse!

My super rad baby (but taller than me now) step bro David!

The sun started to fade as the coolness of evening set in, complete with the birds singing a song to the dim light of the street lamps turning on. For about an hour or two we sat picnic style in a open field with laughter rising and neighbors calling out to each other.

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David (pictured to the right) and I left Arlington, WA pretty last minute and rolled into Corvallis, OR in the middle of the night to a living room sleep over with friends who stayed awake to greet us. The next day, David and I took some time to explore a river and swam like salamanders in a new place, taking our time, pulling ourselves along the shallow parts of the waterway. We didn’t have an agenda, so we gave into the summer lull and let the pressures of everyday dissipate in the warmth of the sun.

Getting to go to co-ops always seems like a treat to me, especially eating at the salad bars. It felt fun to get to pass on some road tripping wisdom and money budgeting as an older sister to a younger brother. It was a luxury to have the time to give David all of my attention to think about the profound questions and vulnerable thoughts that he posed.

This road trip felt like bliss in a lot of ways. Spending time with my brother, feeling free flying down the open road, getting to laugh with old and new friends, swimming in a river, eating at a co-op, seeing the eclipse, the excitement in the air, seeing millions of stars, stopping along the coast coming back home, seeing a herd of elk in a farm field. The magic of summer, road trips, and being connected to people and place all wrapped up into a summer memory.