Reflections on Summer
Wow, summer has just flown by, and September has arrived. For those who follow me on social media, it may seem like I just dropped off the face of the earth this summer, and as far as social media goes, I guess I have. Summer is a busy season, and I often must decide between posting on social media and writing since I rarely have time for both. I have never been fond of social media, so the choice is usually easy – I write. Perhaps that isn’t always a wise choice for a writer who doesn’t have readers or a platform.
Although I haven’t posted on Facebook this summer, I have continued to write, bookending my day—or rather my night—at the computer. While it has been a season of long days and short nights, it has been a season of gratitude and friendship. It has also been a season of reflection as I look back on other summer seasons. And it has been a season of observation and anticipation. The words ‘pay attention’ have caught my attention this summer; even as summer days fade into autumn, I have continually encountered these two words as I prayerfully take my heartfelt longings to God and seek direction for my future.
A Season of Gratitude and Grace
How about you, friend? Has this been a Sabbath season of rest for you? Perhaps, like Elijah, you need to rest, then arise and eat because the journey is too great for you. Or, perhaps, like me, you have had a season of rest, and reflecting on it, you can once more find strength for the journey ahead. This was my reflection on A Season of Summer.
Maybe you have found friends to be evidence of God’s grace this summer. Read more about my gratitude for the help of friends in A Debtor to Grace.
Perhaps, like me, you have felt the winds of change begin to turn your heart and are unsure where they are leading. I hope this post will encourage you as you pause and pay attention to how God is speaking through your delights.
Exciting New Opportunities
While I neglected my Facebook page this summer, I was privileged to write two Facebook posts for The Round Farmhouse ministries—one for June and one for August. I also had an article accepted by Unveiled Living, which will appear in the fall issue of their e-magazine. I’m excited to write for other publications again and hope to do more in the future.
Finally, I topped off my summer with a trip to Rockwall to visit a new friend, Linda Reichart. We met online in a Christian writers’ forum called Flourish Writers. Initially, we connected because we were both from Texas – in a forum with writers from across the country and around the globe. Then, as providence would have it, we are both writing a book on our story of domestic abuse.
Linda runs a nonprofit called Sisters of Grace, an organization dedicated to providing help and community for women who are or have been victims of domestic violence. She invited me to visit her in Rockwall and share my story with her organization. She graciously flew me to Dallas, and we coordinated my visit with a meeting of her organization. It was an incredible experience, and I met some amazing women doing amazing work. Please pray for this organization.
A Final Post for Summer
I closed out August with the intent of writing two new blog posts that have been on my mind for quite some time. One came about as a summer family get-together left me acutely aware of the one absent from our gatherings. I miss him terribly. Although my heart aches with his absence, I am grateful for how he has opened my eyes and increased my compassion for the suffering of others. You can read that post here.
The other post resulted from a conversation with a friend last spring. The importance of processing our grief has sat on my heart for some time, and it was only recently that I finally had some margin space to write about it. After I finished it, I realized this post was quite long – too long for a blog post. After looking for ways to cut it without losing important content, I decided not to post it. I’m not sure what – if anything – I will do with it since it reads more like a message than a blog post, but perhaps I can edit it as an article at some point. I have created a private space for it here, for anyone who is interested.
Recent Reads
Despite my tight schedule, I usually read one or two books each month and listen to four or five others on audible. Generally, I spend a few minutes each morning reading and sometimes a few minutes before sleep. I often spend a couple of hours each day listening to an audiobook while driving, mowing, doing housework, or preparing for my day. Here are some of my favorites from this season.
These three books all somewhat ‘landed in my lap’ by what some might call chance or circumstance. With each book, I was not particularly looking for something to help or encourage me as I longed for change and looked ahead to what the next season of my life might hold. At times this summer, it has felt like there are many potential paths before me, and at other times, I have felt tied to the road I am on without any foreseeable hope of escape. However, each book, by different authors and with different content, has encouraged me to wait actively and attentively. So, I truly believe it was providential that they came to me in this season. Perhaps if you are in a similar place trying to plan out the next steps in your life and not sure what they should be, I pray these books are as encouraging to you as I found them to be for me.
The Story of With by Allen Arnold
The Longing in Me by Sheila Walsh
When the Heart Waits by Sue Monk Kidd
Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer and Secrets in the Dark by Frederick Buechner are nothing alike and would probably not fall into the same genre of literature. Still, both books filled that longing in my soul for something beautiful. These books, especially Buechner’s, are meant to be read slowly, as a book in your hand, and savored.
All My Knotted Up Life by Beth Moore was an incredible memoir! Honestly, I haven’t read anything by Beth Moore in several years and was skeptical about her new book, but this book made me laugh, cry, and sit in awe at her humility and vulnerability. I listened to the audible version of this book, which was read by Beth Moore herself, and I think this is the best way to experience her story.
Sometimes, I find myself looking for a book that will stretch my view of the world around me and open my eyes to the struggles of others in ways I hadn’t considered. Caste by Isabel Wilkerson did just that! I highly recommend this book if you want something to help you understand and love your neighbor better.
I have always loved fiction and good stories that grow and inspire me. The older I get, the more particular I am about what I consider a good story. I want books to leave me better for having read them.
I almost always have both a fictional story and a nonfiction book I listen to on audible. While I have a few favorite authors, I listen to a wide variety of fiction. Although I listened to several good fictional stories this summer, I did not find any that I considered to be remarkable, so in August, when my heart was longing for the comfort of a good story, I relistened to Marilynne Robinson’s Gilead series, which includes: Gilead, Lila, Home, and Jack. Her books are some of my all-time favorites and nourish my soul with a comfort that feels like coming home.
Goodbye to Summer
Now that September has arrived with noticeably shorter days and cooler nights, it is time to bid farewell to summer and welcome fall. While autumn is my favorite season, I always bid farewell to summer with a note of sadness. I will miss the long days and the warm, stary nights that beckon me outside with my coffee in the still, dark morning. I will miss the green and growing life of summer trees and gardens. I miss the noisy morning chatter of birds that remind me of the vibrant energy of young life. The morning bird songs are already more subdued as fledglings have left the comfort of home, and nests are now empty.
But as I look ahead, I am reminded that autumn is a season of maturity and a time to harvest what has been planted in spring and grown over the long days of summer. I pray this is true in each of our lives as well as our year. May your autumn be a season of abundance and may each of you have a blessed and beautiful fall!