August 19, 2022 — A few weeks ago, it was a beautiful weekday summer afternoon, and I left my office to do a walk around and thank the staff of cooks, bussers, scoopers, and ambassadors working at our Glen Arbor campus. Colebrook and Hawthorn were both working, so I could thank and check on them too. It was a busy day and everyone was so focused I could hardly get the word “thanks” out to everyone as they rushed by.
I sat on a rock bench for a second and admired the gardens and all the visitors strolling around. It felt like a line-less Disneyworld. As I sat, I noticed that one of our cherry trees had several branches still full of cherries. Usually by this time in August, that tree has been picked clean. I grabbed a ladder and some empty cups from Colebrook, who was working at our Ice Cream stand, and started picking and gifting these scrumptious last cherries to customers as they walked by.
There were certainly some moments between customers to enjoy a few cherries myself. Yet the greatest moment was sitting high up, surrounded by beautiful fruit-laden branches. There was one magical branch that was so heavy with cherries and so perfectly framed with the Great Hall, the gardens, and the giant oak in the background, that I could not pick its cherries. I took a photo — well, several photos and videos — and left that branch laden for the heavens.
It felt like someone else’s hand – way more powerful than mine — was working in our gardens.
