So long summer

Summer is over and I have a long list of reasons for being overwhelmed with what I can see ahead of me right now. The next few weeks promise to be crazy. Yet, crazy can be good. It doesn't have to be a whirlwind void of laughter, meaningful moments, sweet connections, and more. It could be crazily jam-packed with such great things and not at all a negative season of busy. I am choosing to make it that and hope to follow through. The summer was sweet, yet, in my memory so were all the months before it that went by so swiftly.


"More and more, the desire grows in me simply to walk around, greet people, enter their homes, sit on their doorsteps, play ball, throw water, and be known as someone who wants to live with them. It is a privilege to have the time to practice this simple ministry of presence. Still, it is not as simple as it seems. My own desire to be useful, to do something significant, or to be part of some impressive project is so strong that soon my time is taken up by meetings, conferences, study groups, and workshops that prevent me from walking the streets. It is difficult not to have plans, not to organize people around an urgent cause, and not to feel that you are working directly for social progress. But I wonder more and more if the first thing shouldn’t be to know people by name, to eat and drink with them, to listen to their stories and tell your own, and to let them know with words, handshakes, and hugs that you do not simply like them, but truly love them.” ~ Henri Nouwen