Maybe it’s because I’m getting older, or maybe it’s because I was so busy, but this past summer seems to have flown by faster than the speed of light.

I started sadly enough, with the passing of my father on June 28, and it ended on Saturday with the internment of his ashes at Beechwood Cemetery followed by a reception at Dad’s favourite restaurant.

In between, I managed to go Europe for three weeks with my boys, I camped in Presqu’ile Provincial Park with my daughter, I went to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, for the first time in four years and I saw the Canadian-Cuban artist Andy Rubal not once, but twice. Oh, and I can’t forget about Florence and the Machine, who I also saw in Montréal, and the Blues in the Bay Festival which I recently attended in Alexandria Bay, New York.

Whew, writing it all down at once is almost as tiring as doing it all.

When people ask me, ‘What did you do this summer?’, I answer... ‘I made up for lost time.’ The COVID pandemic made travel impos-sible and it forced the cancellation of two summers worth of festivals.

At least I was able to go camping during the pandemic, but even that didn’t happen without a few challenges.

To be honest I did get a head start on the summer by going to the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in May which was off the charts. Between the performances and the food, it was one of the best music festivals I’ve ever been to and it wet my whistle for the summer ahead.

In June, I took my first of two four-day camping trips to Presqu’ile Park with my daughter Maggie. It was a wondeful time to do some father/daughter bonding, plus I’ve always found Presqu’ile Park and nearby Prince Edward County to be a magical place.

Unfortunately, it was on the next to the last day that I learned that my father had died.

It was gut-wrenching at the time, but he had lived a long life that was filled with love and the two of us had become quite close over the last few years which helped ease the pain of his passing.

My dad was also the one who encouraged me to travel while I was still “young” LOL. He ran away from home to join the navy as an 18-year-old, partially because he didn’t want to inherit the family printing business and partially because he wanted to see the world.

When I told him I was thinking of going to Europe after my return from New Orleans he said, “Go for it. And take lots of pictures.”

He passed before I left, of course, but I felt he was with me every step of the way, including in the neverending line-ups for the airport security checks.

My boys joined me for the Mad Cool Festival in Madrid and then again for my birthday in Rotterdam as well as the Tomorrowland festival in Belgium.

The latter was one of the greatest experi-ences of my 61 years. Five days and four nights camping at the biggest music festival in Europe. Tomorrowland has been on my bucket list for the past nine years and to finally go with my two boys was just the cherry on top.

After the festival, I was able to spend a week in the Netherlands which I have abso-lutely fallen in love with. I’ve been there twice now and plan to go back in October to vist with friends new and old.

I was back in Canada less than a week before I headed off to Presqu’ile again for another four days of camping and wine tasting with a close friend who had never been there before. After my hectic trip to Europe, I needed a few days of R&R.

After Presqu’ile, I went to Montréal to see one of my favourite performers at my favourite venue in the city – the Upstairs Club. Andy Rubal moved to Montréal from his native Cuba as a youngster and he is without a doubt one of the best Afro-Cuban pianists I have ever seen. I actually saw him twice in three weeks. In between, I went on my annual pilgrimage to see the Little League World Series in Pennsylvania.

If you are a baseball purist, like I am, a trip to Williamsport for the LLWS is a must and you can toss in a visit to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown on the way back.

And the grand finale of my most amazing summer was going to see Florence and the Machine at Place Bell in Laval. I have seen them six times now and Florence Welch never disappoints.

So there you have it. The summer of 2022 in the blink of an eye. I can hardly wait until the summer of 2023, but first we have to get through another Ottawa winter.

(If you wish to comment on this or any other View Point column please write to Fred Sherwin at fsherwin@orleansstar.ca)