Mmmm.... Summer

In spite of it all, this is one of my favorite times of the year…

Yes, there is the rain/snow/hail mixture that pounds down every couple of days and turns the 4 ½ miles of dirt road I live on into a 20 minute, sometimes hair-raising drive. Yes, there is the vicious wind that blows the tin roofing off of houses, makes the siding clap loudly against the house and takes anything it pleases and strews it across the property. Yes, there are the rapidly appearing spring time bugs that like nothing better than to crawl into your hair and feast on your scalp until your whole head is tingling with an unscratchable itch. And yes, there are the freezing cold days followed by sweltering hot ones that keep you guessing as to when you can finally pack away those dreaded, bulky winter coats…

But there are so many things that occur only in that split second between spring and summer that I look forward to. Today is a good example.

This morning started off with crisp fresh air and a hot cup of coffee – practically unbeatable! As the warm sun beat through the windows onto my chilled toes, I got to sit and enjoy a warm, fresh breakfast of French toast with pineapple orange marmalade… the warmth and heaviness of winter in the golden brown bread, and the fresh zing of summer in the marmalade.

As the day continued, and the green chile chicken soup that will make it’s way onto the dinner table simmered on the stove, I enjoyed the chance to sit in the springtime sun and watch the kids play in the still soft and tender ground, which will all too soon harden into a near concrete that makes your feet ache and breaks any toys unfortunate enough to be used as digging implements. But for now, it is a soft and rewarding place to play.

In this brief pause between seasons, it seems that our winter weary bodies tire easily. Even the children are ready when the normally dreaded naptime approaches, and today, as the two little ones slept soundly, Everest and I got the chance to lay cuddled up on the bed listening to the birds and dreaming about how we would spend this afternoon and many more to come. For him, playing in the mud with his siblings or jumping on the beloved trampoline are top on the list, for me… creating an oasis in my mind that I will probably never get around to creating in the yard… but I love the planning part of it as much as the actual accomplishment.

And now, as the day winds down, we have celebrating the return of summer by planting some cattails in the gross and marshy place that will someday be turned into a pond, we have harvested the season’s first rhubarb and turned it into sauce for a special dessert for Daddy, and we are looking forward to the return of the crisp night air, the hot soup and fresh bread for dinner, and finally the warm dumplings with rhubarb sauce and ice cream that will send us off to bedtime.

In this brief moment, this pause between seasons, I am enjoying being alive. I am counting my blessings of a healthy family, a beautiful home, a new beginning to an old routine, and above all, a Saviour’s love that has blessed me with such an abundant life.

 “…I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

~John 10:10b