One of my favorite opening pages of a novel is in Ray Bradbury's Dandelion Wine.
Douglas Spaulding, twelve, freshly wakened, let summer idle him on its early-morning stream. Lying in his third-story cupola bedroom, he felt the tall power it gave him, riding high in the June wind, the grandest tower in town. At night, when the trees washed together, he flashed his gaze like a beacon from this lighthouse in all directions over swarming seas of elm and oak and maple. Now . . .
“Boy,” whispered Douglas.
A whole summer ahead to cross off the calendar, day by day. Like the goddess Siva in the travel books, he saw his hands jump everywhere, pluck sour apples, peaches, and midnight plums. He would be clothed in trees and bushes and rivers. He would freeze, gladly, in the hoarfrosted icehouse door. He would bake, happily, with ten thousand chickens, in Grandma’s kitchen...
What is on your summer bucket list? Families often create these, at the beginning of summer. A list of things they want to do over the next three months, small and large. Get a snow cone. An ice cream cone. Have a picnic. Jump in the sprinkler. Go on a trip. Have a game night.
You can be any age to create your summer list, you can be an empty-nester (or never-nester), it can be something you create with friends or just yourself. Mine always includes a trip to Barton Springs, a hike in Balcones Canyonlands, a trip to the beach, and some summer foods. (Not the most elegant, but a slice of cucumber with cream cheese on a Ritz cracker will always take me to childhood summers, and my dad bringing in "cukes" from his garden.)
Also on the list: bring back a bit of water from your travels. Maybe it's from a mountain stream, or the beach, or a lake. It might be from the water fountain at a museum, or from the sprinkler in your own backyard. You don't need much, maybe just a few tablespoons. On August 23, we will all bring those bits of water to church for our water communion ceremony, to celebrate the end of summer and our Homecoming as a congregation.
Not that there won't be fun things happening here at church throughout the summer! Starting this Sunday, we'll have a summer picnic/game day after church. Over the next few weeks, there will be movie nights, a Twilight Zone class for adults, "summer camp" activities for all ages including tie-dye and campfire singalongs - and more.
The world keeps turning, and burning. We attend to those things, but we also make time for fun. That too is resistance.
