Summer simply flew by this year. Was it not only yesterday that my friends and I were going in a joyous post-finals swim in Walden Pond? [An amazing retreat by the way in Lincoln, MA site of where Thoreau wrote Walden].

My last summer of college and it truly felt like it; I spent the majority of the months doing research for my political theory thesis, interviewing professors and lawyers in international law. But in between I made time for something that’s been extremely influential to my time at Harvard: meditation and yoga.

Practicing yoga at Wanderlust in Northern California

I was lucky enough to spend a week helping to set up and take down a yoga and music festival up in gorgeous Lake Tahoe, CA, Wanderlust. Renowned instructors and musicians all came together for the event including Michael Franti and The Wailers.

Helping to build the meditation dome at Wanderlust

During the bustle of the school year, whenever classes or extracurricular life might seem overwhelming, it was so calming to be able to attend yoga classes at our school gym or participate in Harvard Meditation Club. Just remembering to breathe makes day-to-day life that much more vibrant!

All in all, Wanderlust was an amazing experience and I was glad to have the weeks before and after to hike and explore in Northern California. If you ever get the change to kayak across Lake Tahoe, defiantly do it. Just be careful getting out of the kayaks, I ended up more wet at the end than intended!

Preparing for a kayak and hiking adventure with friends

I also devoted a lot of my summer to helping start and teach at a new Urban Gardening Club at home in Los Angeles, CA. I think the highlight had to be helping one of my neighbors tend to his egg-laying chickens: chickens are surprisingly friendly birds with such distinct personalities. I even helped my parents start their own backyard vegetable garden and compost site.

Grape tomatoes from June just beginning to sprout

The tomatoes have nearly quadrupled in size by the time I left and we had so many extra zucchinis we were able to donate bundles to the Gardening Club for neighbors in need.

Now that the school year is well under way, I’m still craving those fresh vegetables, but lucky Cambridge has a wealth of farmer’s markets to choose from.

Until next time,

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