Summer

Child
one with the sun
in trackless fields
of yellow grass and thistle, scent
of humid heavy air and the wing music
of bees and flies.

—A.F. Moritz

If you have school-aged kids, you know that summer can be challenging. We love having our kids at home, but it takes adjustment, and we might feel that it’s even harder to carve out time for ourselves. Siblings may fight more, and we may find ourselves in more frequent conflict with our children. 

But summer is also a season that can remind us of the wonders of our own childhoods- the sense of freedom and exploration that the warm weather and relaxed schedule brings. Can you bring more play into your life and relationships? If you have older kids, can you remember the way their younger faces lit up with joy at the tiniest things? That baby is still within them. Can you find the same childlike joy in your own heart? 

I bet it’s still within you, too.