Hale Family Newsletter – June 15-21, 2026

                             Hale Family Newsletter     June 15–21, 2026

This week featured trail walks, birthday celebrations, church and Bible study, website drama, grocery runs, guitar practice, and enough dinner conversation to qualify as an Olympic event.

Monday

The week began with a very grown-up moment: state and federal taxes were paid automatically, proving once again that excitement comes in many forms. After a walk on the Matteson Trail, a stop at Joann E.’s cottage turned into a one-bulb home improvement mission, followed by a trip to AutoBell where Sally came out looking ready for a magazine cover.

Dinner brought together Stephanie, India, Betty, and Ann D., and the evening wrapped up with Bible Study Group. It was a full day of movement, friendship, and faithful attendance at all major local events, including light-bulb rescue operations.

Tuesday

Nicole (GoDaddy—the host of my website), was scheduled to call in the morning, and I had one important assignment: make sure the phone was not on silent. That simple detail may be the modern version of “watch and pray.” We decided to go live with my new website but ran into problems and it still hasn’t happened.

Even though mat yoga was canceled – our instructor suffered an injury to her foot–I thought she was indestructible 😁 , the spirit of athletic excellence lived on at dinner. A Valentine shirt, frizzy colorful hat, colorful socks, and 4th of July sunglasses created a one-man parade that reportedly improved morale across the room.

Joy and MJ joined for dinner, while Betty and India headed to the Washington area and took Anna, Betty’s dog, along for the trip. Rhetta shared peaches and apples with us on her return from Nelson County, and a long-awaited Bose speaker finally arrived from eBay, then immediately earned its keep during a poorly performed guitar practice by me. 😒

Wednesday

Jerilyn’s prescriptions were ready for pickup at the Kroger Pharmacy, our home was cleaned by Junita, and another Matteson Trail walk kept the day on solid footing. A chess match with Ken ended in another loss, moving the season record to 0–3 and confirming that a dramatic comeback story is still being written.

Later, there was a trip to the Parrish Thrift Store in Poquoson and a stop at Simply Unique for bracelet repair. After lunch came guitar practice, accompanied by Jerilyn’s loving observation that the music was a little too loud and might one day lead to deafness; every great artist needs a critic at home. 😒 Dinner with Mary Jane and Stephanie finished the day.

Thursday

The drone was prepped for Dean to take home to see if his instructor could make it fly, and Vilet R. celebrated her 100th birthday. A hand made birthday card, a personal letter signed by both of us, and a gift, made the occasion even more special, though she tried politely to refuse our gift, before being outvoted by nearby friends

Another big adventure of the day came from my attempted website launch. Nicole called this morning to move the new site live, and what was supposed to take 15 minutes turned into an all-day suspense story involving security permissions, an offline website, and the kind of tension usually reserved for detective novels. A follow-up call was scheduled for Monday morning to go over instructions for using the new site and hopefully taking it live. Yoga was canceled again, Rose has not fully recovered. Plan B. An essay titled The Quiet Cost of Worry was completed for the upcoming Creative Writing Club, while another assignment still waited in the wings: choosing five favorite words and turning them into a poem or story. I am attaching the Quiet Cost of Worry for you to read. I hope you enjoy it. If you have time, let me know your thoughts.

There was also a helpful stop at Betty’s house, where the outside faucet was turned on so her trees could stay hydrated while she was away. Dinner with Mary Jane, Mary S., and Jane delivered plenty of laughter and conversation.

Friday

Friday marked our housekeeper, Junita’s, birthday and included a walk on the Kiln Creek Trail, followed by a Kroger run for groceries. Betty was still visiting family in the Washington area, and Anna the dachshund continued her duties as traveling companion and goodwill ambassador.

A new guitar song joined the practice list: Mississippi, Roll on Forever by Mel McDaniel. That made it the first Mel McDaniel tune in regular rotation, which felt like an occasion worth noting.

Dinner with Mary Jane and Mary S. rounded out the day.

Saturday

The morning began at 0900, with Brandon’s tennis match in Huntington Park, where Kathy (his mom) joined the cheering section. Brandon won easily, proving that some people like to keep their Saturdays efficient.

From there, attention turned back to Vilet R.’s 100th birthday celebration in the Chesapeake Room. Family members came in from Florida, the food was excellent, and the table company—Harold, Joy, Bill, and Mary Jo—made the party especially enjoyable. On the way home, there was time for a warm conversation with Erika, observed thoughtfully by her Pomeranian, who seemed to be gathering material for a memoir.

The day also included work on a list of Windows shortcuts, a shower, and dinner with India, Betty, and Mary Jane. Weight check for me: 202.5, with encouragement aimed firmly at the 200 mark.

Sunday

Sunday began early with preparations for church at 0845, followed by plans to stop at AutoBell to get Sally washed. We stopped by our friend, Joann’s, to deliver her a copy of next month’s Upper Room. We met my daughter (Debby) at the Poquoson Diner for lunch to celebrate Father’s Day. After a wonderful meal, she came back to our house so we could continue our conversations. I love that girl dearly. ❤️ I hooked Sally up to our charging station to get her ready for next Wednesday’s trip. Jerilyn started packing for the upcoming trip home from June 24 through June 30, where one major event will be the 67th high school class reunion.

The reunion itself promises to be a highlight. Garden High, which opened in 1941 and closed in 2003, still carries deep family history: Aunt Ruth was in the class of ’41, Aunt Helen in the class of ’43, and the class of ’59 will be represented proudly as well by me. During “Garden Day,” classes from ’41 to ’03 gather together, vendors fill the grounds, and everyone eventually heads to the gym, where the Green Dragon mascot still holds court. According to family legend, the name came from football players returning from games with their “tails draggin’,” which may be the finest mascot origin story in Southwest Virginia.

I worked on completing this newsletter and sending it out by email.

Notes from the Week

• Trail report: Matteson Trail twice, Kiln Creek Trail once.
• Cultural achievements: one essay completed, one website nearly launched, one Bose speaker successfully deployed.
• Fashion highlight: patriotic dinner wear reached levels not seen in ordinary civilian life.
• Chess update: still seeking the glorious first win.
• Weight report: 202.5 and headed in the right direction.

I would like to end by bringing a smile to your face:

• Never pick a fight with a woman older than 40…she’s full of rage & sick of everyone’s crap.
• If you can stay positive in a negative situation….you win!
• There’s that moment when you finish a quilt…and you just don’t know what to do with your life anymore.
• I love it when somebody’s laugh is funnier than their joke.
• God often uses our deepest pain as the launching pad of our greatest calling.
• I love that point you get to when you’re so tired that everything is funny.

Thank you for sharing another week of this journey with me. If you smiled at a memory, shook your head at my misadventures, or felt a little nudge to call someone you love, then this newsletter has done its job. Until next time, keep walking your favorite trail, laughing at life’s detours, and trusting that tomorrow will bring another good story to tell…Tommy