Summer season reminds us to celebrate every step of our journey

Dear Readers, Boas Festas! It’s the celebration of São João (St. John the Baptist) in the north of Portugal, and I couldn’t be more excited to join in the revelry. Last year, I had been looking forward to this big day because it was THE thing that everyone told me I needed to see. It’s basically the biggest holiday of the year, but I was forced to return home to fight through the triple-digit heat and multiple court appearances, hoping that justice would prevail and allow my children to be reunited with me at my home in Portugal.

I also needed special permissions to accommodate me while in Texas because I was required to defend my dissertation proposal for my PhD before a public audience in a face-to-face presentation setting. As I met virtually over Zoom with my supervisors in preparation for my proposal defense, it was on the day that the São João festivities were kicking off, and one of my professors said, “I can already smell the sardines grilling in the street” as she insisted on wrapping up our meeting. I longed to know what this giant annual party looked, sounded and smelled like, but instead, I was becoming a much better expert on navigating the Hays County Government Center.

But this year is different. My sons are here in Portugal for the summer, and we are witnessing the spectacular display of fireworks, street sardines and bonfires, the squeaking of plastic hammers, music and dancing, as well as the releasing of paper hot-air balloons over the Douro River. It feels like a baptism of the spirit and culture of this country, and I am humbled and grateful to share this experience with my boys as well as with you, my fellow San Martian readers. I believe my family will share life-long memories from this celebration and that just tickles me straight to my core.

For me, this festival is more than a holiday or a party; it’s a commemoration of our resilience. It symbolizes the beauty of new beginnings and rebirth — a reminder that after facing and overcoming challenges, there are moments of joy and celebration waiting for us on the other side.

Repeat after me: The only way out is through. This is my mantra.

Sharing this experience with my family is a dream come true, and I hope it inspires you to cherish the Summer Solstice and all the moments of this season’s celebrations as they connect with your own lives. Our burdens and challenges may feel like we are drowning or completely submerged, but when we break through, coming back up for air, we are able to see our tribulations through a whole new lens on life.

So, cheers to the long days of summer that allow us to recognize light beyond the darkness. May we find our own baptismal healings and new perspectives through the cool sacred springs spouting from the Edwards Aquifer, a river “of gold,” or whatever our nearest body of water may be.

Happy Summer, y’all. Let’s savor the heck outta this one. Together.

Xoxo,

Kelly Stone is an educator, comedian, mother, and author who loves the heck outta the river. She welcomes e-letters at kellystone.org or kellystonecomedy@ gmail.com and adores handwritten notes and postcards via good ol’ snail mail.