End of the School Year BUSY-ness

The end of the year insanity began with States in Cross Country. Here’s Eli receiving the baton in the 4 x 800 m. relay
Good thing my blog allows me to write posts then schedule them out into the future! It has been insanely busy. Here’s a smattering of the early June busy-ness!

The kid in mid-stride, airborne! The team was happy to not finish last at States, as the fast runners were doing other races and not the relays.
Then the Track and Field team end-of-season picnic and awards at a waterfront park in Rockport, Maine.

Then there’s the garden. I need to see if I can get the weed whacker working (ugh, I am NOT mechanical), but here I hacked out the dead rugosa rose stuff. Fortunately, there are a lot of “runners” that are growing well.
And my beloveds, Sven (the gnome) and Phineas (the phlamingo):

Whimsy in your life is a good thing. Thanks so much to Joshua and Ashley for the best mother’s day gift EVER! I keep moving the pair about. TOTALLY LOVE THIS!
Then on the final day of school, after Eli’s last exam, we attended a memorial service for one of his Cross Country teammates, Forest P., who died a week ago from a brain tumor at the age of 18. His parents got him a tutor, though, and he was able to graduate along with his class (though of course he was way too ill to attend the ceremony, he died just a few days after). His father wanted the teammates to come do his practice run route near their home where the reception after was held. When Forest and a friend would come in (usually within 10 feet of each other), everyone would shout “Run, Forest, run!” so we did. Sigh. So impossibly sad:

Members of the team including the coach head out to run for Forest–kids are to the right of the lady in the rose suit

And Friday night was the delayed Wrestling potluck and awards. Eli received a new award, the Chris Remsen award named after a legendary Camden high school athlete. Given the description, I’d call it an all-around best award: best athlete, scholar and teammate. [We postponed the dinner/awards because asst. coach True’s house burned down two nights before the original date. Luckily though they lost their dog, they and infant son are fine.]
Let the summer begin…it looks to be as busy for Eli and me as this past week!