Summertime Traditions

Summer is one of those times when I try to keep my schedule open. I like the freedom to say yes to an impromptu pool visit or trip to the market. I revel in the simple pleasures of popping out to the library and grabbing dinner with a friend. It feels so serendipitous and romantic. It also helps to break away from the rigid schedules of the school year and winter months. We can easily overbook ourselves throughout the year but I find making space for myself seasonally helps me to enjoy the flavors and delights unique to that time of year. 

One of my favorite summer past times is strawberry picking. When I was a little girl my grandmother let the wild vines in her backyard thrive. She was always pointing out sweet little red berries for me to pick and devour right away. There is nothing sweeter than a sun warmed berry in your mouth. When I first started my own garden strawberries were the only plants I grew. I eventually waded into tomatoes, beans, zucchinis, and squash. But my favorite standbys have always been strawberries. 

And so each summer I call the strawberry hotline – our local berry pick-your own market has one – where you can call to find when the strawberries are ready and then head to the fields. The earlier the better for strawberry picking. It is such a delightful adventure to pack up the kiddos and head to the farm for a morning of berry picking. We always collect some fresh produce, a pie for dessert, and donuts. They also get a chance to play at the park after they’re done devouring their own berries and breakfast treats. 

Another joy for me is to bring home the berries and make jam. Jam making in the summer is not only a sign of the season but a sweet way to bring our whole family together. Each summer I make a point to invite my cousins to come visit. Sometimes they stay for dinner and if I’m lucky they stay for a week or two. It gives us the chance to catch up, connect, and bond.

There’s no better activity for teenagers then helping not only pick berries but also to pare them, pummel them to jam, and talk over the activity as a family. What a delight to work together to make something so sweet and fresh. We use my grandmother’s recipe, which admittedly is a lot of sugar. The Kerr jar company of the 70’s liked their sweetener and so do we. If you’re going to make jam, make it good

It feels so wholesome to prepare jam from my grandmother’s recipe, using the mason jars she once did to make new memories with our family. I hope my kiddos remember these sweet summer rituals with joy. It fills my heart to think of the love I pour into each batch and the joy I reap in sharing this summertime tradition with another generation. The spoils of summer are many – what are your favorite ways to enjoy them? 

Finding Peace in Stillness

I am not accomplishing anything, I am not planning my next steps I am simply here. There is sunlight pouring in through the open window. A cool fall breeze blows through the trees and all I see is open sky and leaves. Life is so beautiful in the fall. We had an exterminator come this morning. A few little mice attempted to join us as roommates this season and we are not here for that – we are not a hotel. How glorious it was to be outside in the fresh air. We walked around the house, chatted with someone new, and just absorbed the light and loveliness of a fall day. 

For lunch we grilled steaks outside and sliced them for baguette sandwiches with cartelized onions and a cream sauce of my own invention. It was a lovely meal. The perfect day to cook outdoors and share some good food. So often in the week we get moving and sucked into the hustle and bustle of agendas and tasks, the current of activities sweeping away the precious moments we have to share and enjoy as a family. It is so nourishing and deeply satisfying to take this time to meditate. To absorb and process all of the emotions we are feeling, the sensations rushing through our senses, and to really pause and reflect on all that we are and hand in this moment. 

Planning for the future is wonderful, adding to our list of duties is bound to happen. But sitting still and just absorbing the loveliness of this moment, this place, and nowhere else. That is a glorious gift. This sweet little time in which I am doing nothing but chewing the salty sweet goodness of a chocolate shortbread cookie, gazing over at the space in the sun where light is beaming through the window and onto the carpet. I think I will transition over there and bask in the sunlight as a cat might. Simply stretching and absorbing the bounty and beauty of this moment. That’s what I am going to do and nothing more, nothing less, than everything I want. 

How do you find stillness in your daily life? Does it feel like an obligation or a reward for you?