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What I thought would be a busy Father’s Day weekend last week turned out to be a quiet, relaxing and peaceful one.
I had planned to talk about what restaurants we went to, what we ate, where we stopped for drinks after and more in today’s column.
However, it turned out to be a pleasantly low-key weekend filled with cooking out and embracing the outside.
When I asked my Dad earlier in that week what he wanted to do, he said he was simply happy cooking out at home.
So, instead of making a reservation for this particular holiday (we dined out for Mother’s Day), we made a grocery list.
Hot dogs, hamburgers, bacon cheddar smoked sausage, potato salad and chicken salad were all on the list, and it brought me a lot of joy to shop for the food we’d enjoy, instead of having someone else do it (don’t get me wrong, dining out is still my favorite, but I can appreciate small sacrifices).
It turned out to be a lovely Saturday evening outside with our family. We took the food and celebrated our Father (once we got the grill fired up for the first time of the season, but that’s a whole different story).
For Oscar’s family, in the past we’ve also dined out, but the family was also content just grilling out, so it was a good reason for Oscar and me to clean the deck, bundle our grocery purchases and do some more grilling on Sunday.
Despite the family entertaining, we found time to sneak away just a short distance to Lake Scranton for some early Sunday-morning activity around the 3.5-mile walking and running path at majestic Lake Scranton.
It boasts picturesque scenery throughout the wooden area, and was the first time I’d ever been there, despite its close proximity to Downtown Scranton.
While we made our way around the path and took pictures of the views, we stopped to sit at an overlook at one point to appreciate all that was around us.
The sun reflected on the water, but I had my own kind of reflection thinking about how I no longer felt the need to be somewhere like a formal brunch or dinner to celebrate an occasion.
I was perfectly content sitting, watching, talking with those closest to me and cooking out at home every now and then.
It’s a realization that took me well more than 30 years to come to. You don’t have to be somewhere else to make a day special.
And there we go again: by choosing to stay home, my Dad taught me another little lesson.
I’ll add it to the already very long list.
Mike McGinley is a Times Leader columnist who is often called a man about town. Email him thoughts at [email protected].