Nomad Life - Day 238

This morning, I woke up at Katie & John's house in Hanover by 0630 and spent time reading, doing puzzles and working on Duolingo exercises.  I thought about going to an early Mass (0730) but didn't.  Instead, I worked on travel blog and caught up on eBird entries.  I also spent some time planning for the coming week (i.e., lots of texts to relatives).  However, I skipped breakfast.  Next, I got ready and checked some things in my car - by 0915, I left my sister's house and headed towards Our Lady of the Angels so I could attend their 0930 "Family Mass".  Outside, temps were in the mid 70s and the sky was sunny and clear.  The church's air conditioning unit had apparently failed and the Pastor opened all the windows and doors - there was a pleasant breeze.  I managed to find a good place to sit (behind the Altar) and joined the congregation in boisterous singing and joyous celebration.  When the Procession entered the building, I was startled to see a familiar face.  Actually, though, I didn't believe my eyes - how could the Priest be the same one I'd seen before, elsewhere?  When Father Chris introduced him later in the Mass, he mentioned Kenya and I thought "see, I was wrong".  But then he said, "Father Gabriel is the Chaplain at Marymount University in Arlington, Virginia."  That did it - what a small world!  This was the same Priest that I'd met when I went to hear Kim play the night after I returned from Europe in May.  I decided to stay after church and meet up with Father Gabriel - I also planned to text Kim, to tell her the news.  Meanwhile, the Mass continued at a very fast pace - it was clear that Father Chris was trying to encourage the kids to enjoy church by avoiding lingering on the longer, slower parts of the service.  We skipped at least one reading and a few other prayers before the Liturgy of the Eucharist began.  It all seemed like it was working to give the young people (who sang and prayed loudly) a good start in their Faith.  When the service ended (1015), I made my way to the front of the church to meet up with Father Gabriel.  He was shocked (as I had been) to see me and talked excitedly about the strange ways of life.  I was going to depart but then he asked me to stay until he could finish greeting everyone else.  When he was finally done (1025), we visited for a while and took photos to share with Kim.  He asked for my number and said he hoped I'd visit Marymount again soon.  Afterwards (1035), I drove back to Katie and John's house and settled in to wait for the family to return.  I ate a bit of food ("lunch"), read some more of my books and worked some more on the travel blog.  When Katie arrived (1330), I visited with her briefly and then got ready to go out for some exploring.  By that point, she'd arranged for me to see Dan, Aria, Gigi and Levi later in the day.  Meanwhile, John was still at the the nearby community event in his Bluey costume and Ella was working at a pizza restaurant.  When Katie and I finally left the house, she started driving towards her old home in Quincy.  As we passed through the historic downtown area, I asked her if we could visit "Peacefield", the home of President John Adams and his family (and, later, the home of President John Quincy Adams).  Katie agreed and then admitted that she'd never been there in all the years she'd lived on the South Shore.  For my part, though, I remembered visiting the area during the 1976 Bicentennial era.  Today, though, I wasn't certain if I had been at Peacefield or the nearby Birthplace Farm (John Adams and John Quincy Adams).  Regardless, it has been 50 years since I'd been at the National Site...  Katie used her map app to find the correct area of Quincy and, after some driving nearby, we found some convenient parking right in front of the historic building (1445).  On the front deck, we found three (volunteer) rangers who were happy to talk to us about the park, the available access points and life as a park ranger.  Katie was amazed at this local attraction that she'd missed but I was filled with Deja Vu moments of coming to visit the home with my mother.  "Peacefield" was well preserved but only available to enter with a pass issued by the large (but distant) Visitor Center for the Park.  However, we got a nice consolation prize in a tour of the Gardens and exterior of several buildings on the property.  We saw some of Abigail's roses (still alive after being planted in the late Nineteenth Century).  Along the way, we went from having the place to ourselves to seeing large groups of people being offloaded by an NPS Trolley every 30 minutes or so.  Feeling a bit crowded, I suggested that we leave.  Katie obliged and we drove east until we were on Hough's Neck, where my sister's family lived in the last 1990s and early 2000s.  The neighborhood looked mostly the same but she pointed out how a tree had been removed that had previously blocked the view of the Boston Skyline - now she would have had a completely unobstructed vista of everything.  Katie next took us to one of the Boston Harbor Islands, (nearby) Nut Island, and parked in the lot of the NPS unit at 1545.  We got to see lots of seabirds and walk along the high bluff above the harbor.  Katie told me that she, John, Brian and his wife (Katie) had traveled close to this island during a boat trip a few days prior.  We departed at 1550 and started driving back to Hanover.  Katie and I got to catch up on a lot of family news along the way.  We also almost hit a whole flock of Turkeys (mom and babies)...  After arriving back at Katie’s at 1630 we waited (almost impatiently) for the arrival of Aria, Dan, Gigi and Levi - they reached the house at 1700.  Aria greeted me with a comment "Welcome Home!" and I told her that it was nice to think that this really was the place where I could come when I needed a break from the Nomad Life.  We then visited for a while - this was my first time seeing (and holding) Baby Levi but I was amazed to see how much Gigi had grown since my last visit (see AUG 2025).  I had fun playing with the kids and talking to Aria (meanwhile, Dan went to play tennis nearby).  The fun continued until 1815 and then we had to say goodbye.  Sad...  John arrived just in time to wear his Bluey costume, which scared Gigi, but I heard later that his granddaughter asked about her "hero" for the rest of the evening.  At 1845, Katie served us some dinner and I ate with her and John until almost 1945.  The meal was good and we enjoyed some more of the bourbon.  At 2010, I departed for a walk, stopping to visit with Ella on the way (she was in her car in the driveway).  Outside, it was 75 F but significantly overcast.  While walking from my sister's house to the Hanover High School (and using their track in the twilight), I logged about three miles of walking and reached my step goal for the day.  After returning to the house (2130), I watched movies in the guest room until 2230, when I went to bed.  What a great day of history, sight seeing and visiting with family!