The summer approaches and for many it will be the time to fly off to exotic parts of the world. A time to lay down the busyness of work and to soak up the sun for a week or two.
For others, the idea of summer brings with it the dread of having to think of how to fill up the children’s time and also bellies with food. For those with young family’s summer can be a time of real struggle. How to entertain the children, how to arrange child care around work and how to arrange food when the support of free school meals isn’t in place.
In the life of the church, summer is a slightly odd season, peppered with weddings and the occasional out door event the life of the church bubbles along nicely with out the seasonal busyness brought about by Easter or Christmas. The long stretch of what the lectionary calls ‘ordinary time’ looms large over the months as we head through the summer and on into autumn.
Perhaps this year we might look to approach summer differently. To take the opportunities to slow down when they come along. To take the opportunities to find creative, cheap and low-key ways to entertain the children, to not feel the pressure to always be on the go. Perhaps a key thing to do, is take it easy on ourselves, to not always be comparing our summers to the neighbour down the road, but instead to find joy in the small things. And to know that if we really are struggling, then there are agencies out there who’d love to be able to support us through.
Blessings
Rev Tim.
