So long, summer?
OK, so I’ve been in my new place for six weeks now. And for so much of that time, it’s been like a vacation of sorts — meeting new people, seeing new things, enjoying new surroundings.
But tonight the vacation officially ended. We attended my son’s ‘meet the teacher’ night at the new school. Don’t get me wrong; it was a good experience. But the very fact that we were there could mean only one thing: summer is over.
I don’t mean to complain, but just stating the obvious, it was not the most fantastic of summers. While we spent a lot of time physically together as a family, there was lots of stress as well. Interviewing, house-hunting, and moving really took a toll on the usual quality of summer we’ve come to enjoy. The fact that we had a few periods of separation as a family during that time just exacerbated the frustration and made it seem like the season was literally flying by.
And tonight — just like that — summer officially bid us good-bye. Strange thing though. Its voice was barely a whisper, as if no one had bothered to notice its presence in the first place.
So many of the things we’ve always enjoyed just didn’t happen this summer. No baseball games. No swimming. No official family vacation. Now that I think about it, I didn’t even have a single bite of ice-cold watermelon this season. Now those summer possibilities have been replaced by things I’ve never particularly enjoyed: earlier wake-up times, earlier bedtimes, homework, packed lunches, and the like.
In spite of my admittedly pathetic ramblings, I still look around and realize how very blessed we are as a family. God has blessed us in innumerable ways. Every day is a gift from Him. And whether that day is kissed by the summer sun — or not — I have the responsibility to make it count. After all, no one else can do that for me.
Perhaps I don’t have to say good-bye to summer after all. Maybe, just maybe, the sun shines brightest in the hearts of those who take the time to seek Him.
And if that’s true, then there’s simply no reason I can’t experience the blessings of summer every day of the year.
Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)
