Visiting the Neighbors

Here where we live in northern California, we boast the largest municipal park in the nation. Parts of it look like deep wilderness, until you hear a car horn from just a few dozen yards away. Other parts are truly wild, inhabited by bobcats, eagles, lynx, bears, and cougars. Some of our favorite and most frequently glimpsed wildlife are the deer.

For reasons I can understand (I'd feel the same way if I were a deer), they like to hang out on the golf course in Upper Park. The grass is well-tended and hunting is unlawful. Thus, the deer have little to fear from humans and, although not at all tame, they are unafraid if we don't approach too closely.

One day last week, my hubby and I decided to take a short drive. We wanted to visit the neighbors. It didn't take long to discover them. We found the yearling girls grazing peacefully together with the Boys' Club slightly removed. A few minutes later, they wandered nearer and we got an even better view. 

That's when I chose to pay our friends a more personal visit. One of the young bucks lifted his head and twitched an ear, letting me know he was keeping an eye on me, but other than that, they behaved in a neighborly manner and we had a pleasant time.  This is just one of the things I love about the beautiful place where we live.

Susan loves to hear from readers. Write her at susan.aylworth.author@gmail.com, or visit www.susanaylworth.com or her Facebook page, www.facebook.com/Susan.Aylworth.Author. Watch for Amber in Autumn, Book 3 in the "Seasons of Destiny" series, coming near the end of September. 

Sometimes, a mom has to brag

Sometimes a mom just has to brag. I'm enormously pleased with and proud of each of my children. I've shared their successes in this blog more than once. Today my brag is about my son, John, and what he has recently accomplished.

At the end of August, we celebrated the ribbon-cutting for Xytogen, the BioTech company John founded four years ago in Silicon Valley. This ceremony fulfilled a dream our son has long harbored to bring his work back to his hometown. He couldn't have been happier.

The event turned out to be rather a big deal. Staff members from our state assemblyman's office presented a certificate thanking John for bringing BioTech to the north state. Professors who taught John in his MBA program came, as did the dean of his department and the university provost, scientists and physicians, and about 80 others.

We always knew John was bright, creative, and driven, but we could never guess what he'd do with all of that. We certainly didn't expect this.

Our son took a winding career path to find his way into BioTech. After working several years in orthopedics, he became interested in regenerative medicine. He was especially curious about the potential for stem cells, ethically derived from adult fat tissue, to soothe and heal. He began working with highly skilled scientists to investigate the possibilities.

What developed was Factor Five, a "pharmaceutical." Stem cell proteins form the basis for a serum, a cream, and an eyelash treatment scientifically proven to slow or even reverse the aging process in facial cells and increase the length and volume of eyelashes and brows. 

The company has taken off. The products, now available mostly through dermatologists, plastic surgeons, and estheticians, have been hugely successful. For John, skin care is a way in to the field. His goal is to develop burn and wound treatments to reduce suffering throughout the world.

At the official grand opening, I learned new things about stem cells. John's staff conducted tours through the building, introducing the company and the products in the large reception/conference room and then taking visitors into the lab. There, with the delicate stem cells carefully sheltered, post-doctorate PhDs who work with Xytogen explained something of the science for how and why the treatments are so effective. It's impressive.

I'm pleased for my son and for his family, who now have Dad working closer to home. I'm thrilled for the community to have the burgeoning field of BioTech growing here in our backyard. Mostly, I'm one proud mama, not just of John, but of each of my children. Stick around. I'm likely to share more of that pride in the future.

When Susan isn't bragging about her kids and grandkids, she writes swoon-worthy small town romances. Her latest series is "Seasons of Destiny." Watch for Amber in Autumn, coming soon. 

They're All Grand!

Our newest grandson turned 24 last week. Please note I didn't say our youngest who has his first birthday this week. Callum (we call him Cal) joined our family this past February when he married our eldest granddaughter, Samantha.

Cal brings a number of firsts to our clan: (1) He is our first grandson-in-law; (2) He married our firstborn granddaughter; (3) His new dad-in-law is our first son; (4) Because we could not attend the wedding (they were married two states away when I was days out of surgery), we first met Cal last month when Sam brought him to our family reunion, dubbed AylaPalooza. (See the family portrait below.)

Probably the biggest first he brings? He's a citizen of the U.K., born in Dumfries, Scotland, and studying at the University of York when he and Sam met through mutual friends. We've never had a Brit in the family until now. Because he needed a special visa to come to the U.S.A., and because things were a bit . . . shall we say, impacted? . . . at U.S. Immigration Services, Cal and Sam were engaged for almost 18 months before they could marry. It's the sort of sweet love story I may one day write.

Sam is delighted. She's been waiting for Mr. Right (not Mr. Wright; he married our daughter), and Cal fits nicely. Sam graduated a few months back and now has a high-powered job with Dell. She can support them in style while Cal attends university here to complete his degree. Until he's accepted, he is working as a teller in a bank near their apartment. That fits well into his plans; he's earning a degree in finance. He has also lived in Hong Kong and speaks Cantonese, so we can foresee an interesting and prosperous future for this cute couple.

They couldn't appear happier and we are all happy for them. For my part, I'm thrilled to have a new grandson, even if he's already several inches taller than I am. My grandchildren are all truly grand, no matter how they join our family.

Watch for Amber in Autumn, Book 3 in the "Seasons of Destiny" series, coming near the end of September. 

Making Lemonade, MCO in NYC

Some months ago, my baby girl, Rebecca, and her eldest son, Caleb, signed up with a wonderful group for an amazing opportunity. In becoming part of the Millennial Choirs and Orchestra (MCO), they looked forward to several important concerts, their summer season culminating in a highlight performance in Carnegie Hall.

Titled "Nearer, my God, to Thee," the concert began with an astonishing and deeply moving arrangement of "A Mighty Fortress" and consisted mostly of sacred music. Since the performance was scheduled for mid-July, they also offered a patriotic segment.


Five groups of choirs and orchestras from around the southwest studied the same music, preparing to divide into three casts, each of which would have one big night on the stage in the renowned Stern Concert Hall. Becca and Caleb were in the "blue" cast, scheduled for Saturday, July 13.

With a once-in-a-lifetime experience ahead of them, and a sold-out concert hall awaiting, Becca and Caleb endured an intense rehearsal schedule, costume fittings, and all the expected preparation. That wasn't all. The rest of the family wanted to see them in concert, and since they were going to be in Manhattan, they certainly wanted to take a few bites of all the Big Apple had to offer. Months of work, planning, and saving led up to the big day.

There they were, rehearsing on the concert stage, when the lights went out. At first, they didn't let it bother them. Accustomed to having the lighting technicians at work while they were, they continued on, using only the battery-operated lights on the orchestra's music stands to continue. When the blackout did not ease, the group became restless. This wasn't just normal light-testing, was it?

Soon the Hall officials came in to report that something had happened, blacking out all of central Manhattan. Yes, their scheduled performance was on that night, the night the lights went out throughout the central city on the exact anniversary of the 1977 Manhattan blackout. July 13 also came during Manhattanhenge, the one time annually when the setting sun lines up with the downtown streets.

For a short time, the musicians continued to rehearse, hoping and praying that the power would come back in time for their concert as scheduled. The Hall's staff knew when their fail-safe point occurred, the hour when it would be too late to load in an audience even if the power did return. When that time arrived, they came in to deliver the bad news: For the first time in its history, Carnegie Hall canceled a performance due to technical problems.

Imagine the heartbreak. This concert had been the focus of months of work, not just for hundreds of musicians, but for thousands of people among their family and friends, many of whom had traveled to NYC to enjoy the experience with loved ones. The disappointment was tangible for them all.

As they exited the hall, one woman announced, "I came here to sing. Let's sing." Most of the orchestra members could not participate, given the difficulty of setting up instruments on 57th Street, but the singers quickly organized and an impromptu concert began. Soon their director came up with a makeshift podium and began leading the group.

As the sun set between the skyscrapers of Manhattan, the Millennial Choirs sang. Though they missed their opportunity to perform to the 2,800+ people who would have heard them inside the hall, they ended up singing to hundreds on the streets of Manhattan. Several million have now heard their performances recorded on YouTube. (See #MCOINNYC I Stand All Amazed Carnegie Hall - NYC Power Outage, I Believe in Christ -

The Millennial Choirs and Orchestra went to New York to sing praises in a famous hall, but ended up singing to the world. It's a story I will always remember when stuck with lemons and making lemonade. 

Nothing like family

Summer is a great time for vacations, travel and family gatherings. Our family reunion happens every other year in odd-numbered years, which means we are just returning from a wonderful time with our very own wonderful people.

Some years ago, we realized that, with family spread out from sea to shining sea, we would have to plan something formal. Otherwise, our only meetings would be at weddings and funerals. Not everyone can make it even to those. With that in mind, we began planning our first reunion.

Son John, who is in business and marketing, alerted us right away to the problem of calling it a reunion. "That sounds like a couple of maiden aunts sitting under a tree, sipping lemonade and gossiping. You need to call it something exciting, you know, like a rock festival, like a something-palooza." On that day, AylaPalooza was born. This past one was AP 8.

Forty-two of us met in a cozy lodge near Bear Lake, a beautiful, natural lake on the Utah-Idaho border. Our daughter, Rebecca, hosted and divided up meal prep so no one ended up stuck in the kitchen. We had the lake for fun, but also the local Raspberry Festival (yum!), ATV trail-riding in the hills, a few organized group games, and an impromptu family dance on our final evening. Mostly, we had each other.


At our first AylaPalooza 14 years ago, some of our group had doubts about how well it would work. For the second one, the doubts coalesced around the question, "Can it be that good again?" By the end of the third, AylaPalooza had become an established tradition. We already know the June dates and the place for AP 9 in 2021.

I love seeing the cousins playing together. I love it that when a baby cries (our youngest this year was ten months old), an aunt, uncle, or cousin is on the spot to lift, cuddle, and calm. I grin at the impromptu games that arise when a son starts quoting lines from old favorite family movies and a brother jumps in to one-up him. I love these people and our precious gatherings every two years are worth all the money, time and trouble they take. There's nothing like family.

Susan Aylworth is the author of 18 published novels. Her latest is SUNNY'S SUMMER, a romance set in the Sierra foothills near her northern California home in the aftermath of the devastating #CampFire. Watch for AMBER IN AUTUMN, coming in September. She lives with her husband of 49 years, Roger. She loves to hear from readers. Find her at www.susanaylworth.com, @SusanAylworth, susan.aylworth.author@gmail.com, or facebook.com/Susan.Aylworth.Author. Also on Pinterest and Instagram.