Summer Season

The Tabebuia or Trumpet tree heralds the beginning of summer season in Naples with its yellow blossoms evoking the light of sunshine.

Karen Coney Coplin

Summertime is upon us and for many that means travel if you are departing from Naples, where are you headed? Of Course, Mother’s Day celebrations may be in order before you take wing to parts known or unknown. I plan to enjoy breakfast or brunch with my daughters at the Cove Inn Coffee Shoppe on Naples Bay.

The restaurant industry reports that this is the busiest serving day of the year. It’s also a day of extraordinarily high phone traffic. Will you be at a favorite Naples restaurant?

A lifetime ago, my parents called me on Mother’s Day 2007, a turnaround from my normal call to them. Once I returned home, I returned their call and remember our “stereo sound” conversation as both stayed on the phone at the same time. This is always an endearing recollection.

Only my dad spoke on the answering machine message, though. I still have his words emblazoned on my brain to this day: “Oh hi, honey, hope you’re having a happy Mother’s Day. Give us a call. We love you.”

I didn’t know then, but that would be the last message saved from my dad as he passed away about 10 days later when his health backtracked suddenly and heartbreakingly, having previously been in remission from leukemia.

As hard as I thought that Father’s Day, my first, would be without him, I found solace in being especially sensitive to the needs of my mother who had lost her life’s partner and soulmate.

Theirs was a very profound connection which I wanted to honor and support, not just on that day, but especially that day. I was committed to being a lifeline for her, however that maybe. And neither she nor l felt any need to do much more than to hold each other, both in our thoughts and in our arms.

We may have felt broken and lost but we were surrounded by an unconditional force of love which exists all the time, if we are open to receiving it.

I’m thinking of this now, because even though the summer months give us a new lease on life, adventures related to graduation and other family celebrations, and festive holidays like the 4th of July, there are many around us grappling with recent losses.

I share this because there is no shortage of Life in Naples readers who are feeling bereft on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.

Grief plays an outsized role in the aftermath of the death of a loved one. If you are in this situation, remember that summer’s red letter days can also be used to find ways of grounding ourselves. Likewise, with a more relaxed, unscheduled pace, the summer months can be a helpful time to reflect, remember and reset. What matters is within us. Wherever this journey may find us. You are not alone.

If you want to be part of lifting others up and celebrating the awards recipients next month, I’d love to hear from you and meet you, too. Email Karen with your article ideas concerning Life in Naples (especially as to local charities and their activities): Napleskcc@gmail.com. Follow her on Instagram for more vignettes about Life in Naples: @naplesbythenumbers