OTHER PHILL BLOGS

May 31, 2006

SUMMER TIME

Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial start of summer. I like summer. Yes, sometimes it can be blistering hot. And oh, I have had some painful sunburns, particularly in my childhood before sunscreen came along.


Summer is a time for making memories with family vacations, croquet on the lawn, catching lightning bugs, grilling outside, backyard picnics, and making homemade ice cream.


Remember cranking that ice cream churn and pouring on the salt and wondering if the cream was ever going to freeze?

My generation remembers great songs about summer. Songs like “Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Day of Summer” (Nat King Cole), “Summer Wine” (Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazelwood), “A Summer Song” (Chad & Jeremy), and “Summertime Summertime” (The Jamies).

One of my favorite songs anytime is “Summer Breeze” sung by Seals and Croft.

Of course, there is the old Gershwin song, “Summertime” from “Porgy and Bess.” Then there is the array of tunes by the Beach Boys.

But for me beach music means sounds like songs from the juke box at places like “The Pad” at Ocean Drive beach on the Carolina coast.

Summertime to me is eating fresh fruit and vegetables. Silver queen corn, squash, green beans, tomatoes, blueberries, watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries and peaches are just a few of the mouth watering delights of summer for me.

I read in the Bible from beginning to end that God says such food is “good.” The creation story recounts how “the earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with seed in them, after their kind; and God saw that it was good.”

The last chapter of the Scriptures starts with the words, “Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”

I am ready for the “good ole summertime.” Our family enjoys playing in the creek behind our home and cooking out. Below are some photos of how we started this summer with Cissy’s children and grandchildren.

No comments: