Monthly Round-Up: Rose & Thorns – May 2021

Welcome to Rose and Thorns. A monthly round-up of the highs and lows, good and the bad, and all things in-between.

Thorn: Scout

I have been dreading this post all month long. After the last few months of struggling with health issues, Scout sadly passed away this month. He was my companion for thirteen years, through multiple college degrees, careers, and moves. Losing him has is a sadness I’ve never experienced. My daily routine revolved around him. Now my home feels empty and painfully quiet. As the weeks have passed I’ve been trying to make a new schedule for myself, mostly focusing on getting out of the house and exercising. But I still look for him when I come home. I still anticipate him greeting me at the door with excitement. These are the nanoseconds that are like tiny daggers of sorrow every evening. Out of all of this sadness, I’ve been genuinely grateful to everyone who has checked on me and asked how I was doing. My friends and family have gotten me out of the house, and made me put on clothes other than pajamas have been therapeutic. Grief is something only time can heal, and each day, I feel a little bit better. My focus has been on all the good times’ Scout and I had together; I am grateful for his companionship and unconditional love. 

Rose: Writing For Distraction

Rose: Writing has helped focus my attention away from the sadness. This month’s blog post highlights the road trip Aaron and I did while moving him to California. I’m so grateful for the weeks leading up to his move which we were able to spend together. Reviewing the number of places we visited are some of my favorite memories we’ve had together. Although the distance has had its moments of difficulties, I’m trying to focus on the next time we will see each other and the good times ahead. 

Rose: Exercising

Not to keep harping on the same sad cord, but there is only so much laying around and crying I can do. To keep me from spiraling into despair, I’ve been setting aside time to go outside for one hour to do some type of activity. I can either go for a walk, run, or bike. It doesn’t matter which one I choose; I just have to disconnect from everything and go. Most days, I’ve decided to bike. It’s easier on my knees, and I can explore many of the beautiful bike trails and local parks in my area. I have also found it motivational to log a workout on my Map My Run app. Sharing my activities with my mom and Aaron has kept me motivated to go out and move around. Not to mention, after an hour or more of exercise, I feel motivated to tackle the rest of my day. 

Favorites Of The Month

I tried two new recipes this month. Both were simple and delicious. First was a Bacon-Wrapped Pork Tenderloin from the Food Network, or pork wrapped pork as I like to call it. The sauce layered between the two porks is sweet with just the right amount of heat from the cayenne. It was so good I wrote it down to use for future recipes. The Second recipe was Oven-Baked S’mores. I came across this recipe out of necessity. I had leftover s’more ingredients from my camping trip and thought this would be like making one giant s’more. The crushed gram cracker, butter, and brown sugar goo elevate a basic s’more into a magical treat that can be served hot or cold. Perfect for summer get-togethers!
My Dahon Bike has been my favorite method of exercise lately. Not only does it fold up, making it very portable, but it’s light enough to carry up my stairs. I also picked up two new accessories for my bike this month. A bell, to warn everyone I’m going to blow by them; The sharp tone says, “move your slowness out of my way,” ding-ding slowpoke… And a tire pump to touch up my tire pressure before a long ride. This pump is also so compact I can fit it in a small backpack or attach it to my bike if I wanted to take it along.

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