Cashmere and Josh grilled outside today and we ate in the breezeway in mid-afternoon when it was shady and the day is the most pleasant. Great food and what a nice time.
It's interesting that I enjoy the place more now that I'm not so attached. I have loved the pond from the beginning (8 years in July) but I have rarely enjoyed it. I was engaged in a nurturing project rather than pursuing direct entertainment, and it was mostly solitary. Although I did have a fantasy of some day drinking coffee there in the mornings before going to work, I never once did that. Not for any sad reason (like I ran out of coffee) but because it's like raising a baby and there was always something else that needed to be done. I couldn't stop to enjoy anything right then.
Anyway, the pond is mature enough to stand on it's own now, and I've not only stopped annoying them, I've stopped feeling obligated to do so. They're not only maintaining it well, they have actually integrated that nice space into their lifestyle.
I've come a long way from bickering with Mr. Bill over how to decorate and maintain the big aquarium in his back yard.