Hello dear readers,

I write to you from my kitchen desk today, thunderstorm sounds on in the background and a mug of chai tea beside me. Yesterday we had a downpour while all the windows were open, and I’m craving more of that, despite it being the end of June. I have never been a true summer person, and while I’ve grown to enjoy it for what it is, I always long for cold, stormy weather. 

This is another one of those days where I have so much to say that I’m not sure where to begin, and so a list is in order:

• As of yesterday, I’m officially done with my teaching contract for the year. It was only two months, but I feel like I lived several years within that time¹. Teaching full time is a ride, especially when you haven’t taught in five years (and especially going into an alternative school). I learned a lot, and I will miss it, but I’m very much looking forward to what’s ahead.
• Yesterday, too, I signed on for another year as a teaching assistant in the art therapy program I graduated from². It’s one of my favourite jobs to date, because of how formulaic it is (and because, you know, art therapy). I start again in September!
• Now that work is done for the summer, I’m going full speed ahead with revisions on my novel. I still don’t know what I can and can’t tell you, but I’m sure you have an idea of what’s happening—and if you don’t, I hope I’ll be able to be less cryptic soon.
• I’m slowly working on my next poetry collection, too, though that’s taken a back seat to revisions. I had hoped to have it out by the end of summer³, but with everything else that’s going on, I’m not sure that will happen. We’ll see, though! I think I have less to do on it than I think I do.
• The lavatera finally opened in the backyard, along with a beautiful orange and brown tickseed, alongside the climbing nasturtiums. Where there was very little colour a few weeks ago, there is now an abundance of it. The chamomile—which I have only ever planted once, and which has returned every year since—was going strong, and is now going over, and so I envision a lot of pulling dead plants in the coming days.
• I finally finished knitting the second sleeve of what I’m calling the bog sweater⁴, after having started it about a month ago. I haven’t been sitting down to knit all that often, but today I spent a good few hours knitting while watching old episodes of Midsomer Murders⁵. After the last two busy months, sitting around all afternoon was exactly what I needed.
• I’m also resurrecting a simple dress I cut out before I started teaching, and then let fall to the wayside, for obvious reasons. It’s all cut and pinned and ready to sew—hopefully it’ll be done tomorrow after raspberry picking at the farm.
• I have a black hollyhock in the front yard that’s at least eleven feet tall now⁶. I don’t know what’s gotten into it, but I’ve loved seeing it grow taller by the day.

I’m still at that point in time where something has ended but my brain hasn’t caught onto the fact—I keep thinking I’m going to get up early on Monday morning, drink my coffee, and then head off to my classroom. But I’m not! I’m going to do the first parts, but then I’ll sit down and work on my novel. It’s strange to be going back to how things were, but I welcome it with open arms.

—Catherine

FOOTNOTES

¹ When you’re a teacher, every day is different. You never know what’s going to happen, and you’re never bored. Which is probably why it’s such a good job for someone like me!

² I’ve been doing this job since September 2023, and have been taking on more marking each year. I hope to keep doing it as long as I can!

³ It is very much a summer collection, as all the poems were written during July and August 2022 as part of a self-inflicted (lol) writing challenge. It just doesn’t feel right releasing it any other time! Though I’m not opposed to a September release date.. So you may just see it this year!

⁴ It’s knit in stripes of mossy green, medium brown, and a colour that I’m calling bone that’s just a fancy way of saying off-white. 

⁵ If you’re new here, Midsomer Murders is my all time favourite television show (aside from Twin Peaks). I’ve watched it all the way through to season fourteen, after which I started it again, because I couldn’t stand the thought of John Nettles not being Barnaby anymore.

⁶ A few weeks ago it was barely eight feet tall. I’m so curious to see how much further it goes.

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