Summer Solstice

I can so clearly remember when I was a child
I would hear adults talk about how quickly the days slip by
and I always thought they were crazy.
Do you remember as a child how the months on the calendar
seemed like vast oceans of time spread out before you?
There were always things like your birthday
and Christmas that were islands of pleasure
in that vast ocean and you waited
so long for them to come around.
Summer seemed so long to me.
You felt like you'd never see
your friends from school.
But we didn't do a lot back then, not like kids do today.
My mom worked so our days were spent at home,
just me and my brothers. We had the major networks, PBS,
and one UHF channel on our television.
We played Rummy and Payday and played
outside with the neighbor kids. When
my parents came from home from work, we would do
stuff in the garden, usually until dark--which is like 8:30
or even later in the summer. Then we would eat supper.
I often think of summer nights, after we were done with the
outside work and had eaten supper and cleaned up the dishes,
the evening news would go off and there would be either
The Honeymooners or The Andy Griffith Show. We would all
be tired and hot but not quite ready for bed and we would
sit together in our little living room and watch those
old shows and laugh together.

Fast-forward a few decades
and I am now the mother of four children.
My summers are very different now.
I am as thrilled as the children to be done with school
for a while, though I seem to be spending most of my free
time mulling over plans for the next school year, looking at
curriculum options and making lists.
There is a large garden behind my house still,
but it is my husband's work, not mine.
I do get to deal with all the produce
that appears by my kitchen sink.
We do a lot of something that my family almost never
did--swimming, but we have the blessing of a good friend
with a fabulous private pool. My kids are so thankful for
the Popsicles for sharing their pool with us.
This is probably my children's
favorite activity of summer.
There are two VBS weeks for us each summer, two different
churches where my children attend this ministry.
They LOVE those weeks. I like them too but am
usually glad when they are over.

I feel like my days are so full of just the daily stuff
that has to get done that there doesn't seem to be much
time for extra projects. I know that having a baby has a lot
to do with my time evaporating, although I am beginning to
think that this is just what happens as kids get older.
Last night Big E went with my brother to The Big City
to a baseball game. They didn't get home until midnight
and I waited up for him. That would explain
my many yawns today.

We are still wrapping up the loose ends of school work.
We do try to get some house work done from time to time.
I have daily encounters with laundry.
And how much of my life is spent making a meal, serving the
meal, eating, and then cleaning up after? Not to mention
going through recipes, coupons, planning
menus, grocery shopping.
But I should be thankful we even have
food and we have plenty to go around.
And options.
Many people in the world have no food, never mind options.
These are the things that make me realize I am silly
to complain about my anything in my life.

I am so very thankful for the things in my life
that I sometimes mistake for difficulties.
I am thankful for a healthy beautiful baby that has been
a breeze to nurse and has been rather easy to get on
a schedule. I am thankful for healthy children
who ask for snacks for their growing bodies.
I am thankful that they are
healthy enough to play and get their clothes dirty.
I am thankful that they have the energy to get rowdy.
I am thankful that they have strong minds to read the
books that they sometimes leave
scattered all around the house.
I am thankful that they are learning to help me--even if
the learning part means the job doesn't get done exactly as
I would like it to be done. I am thankful for a hard-working
husband. I am thankful for helpful grandparents that make
our lives easier. I am thankful for big closets and a home we
designed ourselves. I am thankful for blooming flowers
and prolific squash plants. I am thankful for a good iron
and clothes that need pressing. I am thankful for a safe
vehicle with good air conditioning.
I am just so thankful for the "things" in my life.
One thing leads to another.
Things that I so easily take for granted are things that
I should be thankful for. I would miss them if they weren't
there. Like hot and cold water.
Plumbing.
Ice.
Friends.
Socks.
Deodorant.
The list never ends.
So I should make sure that I am always
"praising God, from whom all blessings flow. "