Showing all posts in June 2022

Clear packing tape holds warped lids in place on two plastic bins in our home office. The boxes stored plates, cups and assorted snacks in my 1995 college dorm room. Now, they keep handwritten notes, cards and letters, hundreds of them reaching back to my middle and high school days. The ink is fading and some of the paper has turned but the memories kept inside are vivid.

Among the mix of white and brightly-colored envelopes there are several with a return address marked Grand Bay, Alabama, from my loyal, long ago pen pal, Pam. We met in New Orleans in 1990 at a New Kids on the Block concert. As soon as we returned to our respective homes -roughly 300 miles apart – we began to exchange letters. Our stories stretched for pages, filling envelopes to their limit and occasionally requiring tape to keep them closed. We decorated those paper pouches with such color that a 64-count Crayola crayon box looked downright bland. I couldn’t wait for my daddy to come home from the coal mines carrying the letters he picked up from our post office box to see if one was for me. Pam’s letters, and the ones I wrote to her, became the best part of my summers.

In the spring of 2020, our school switched to virtual learning and Lily began to miss her best friend, Brooke. For fun (and maybe to give her something to do) I suggested she write Brooke a letter. Lily meticulously penciled a message to Brooke using her very best handwriting. I taught her how to address the envelope and the next morning she marched it to the mailbox. My heart couldn’t help but smile as I remembered my own love for letter-writing and the joy I felt whenever my pen pal replied.

As I searched for a way to make letter-writing a relevant 2022 summertime activity (Isn’t Facetime faster? Email easier?) I came across this quote by author Sara Sheridan:

“To me, reading through old letters and journals is like treasure hunting. Somewhere in those faded, handwritten lines there is a story that has been packed away in a dusty old box for years.”  

Pam’s letters are a part of my story. They are a reflection of a friendship and a space in time I might have long forgotten without handwritten words to remind me. Letters may seem an antiquated way to keep in touch but they capture our life in ways technology cannot, with heartfelt expression that no emoji can communicate. Nothing compares to a handwritten letter, signed, sealed and delivered the old-fashioned (summer) way.

There is a simple sentiment penned post-script in many of the cards I’ve kept through the years. It is a bible verse written by Paul to believers in the city of Philippi:

“I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you.” – Philippians 1:3

Paul’s words here are not especially profound… except they are. He sets an example for us not just through his faith and leadership but in the affection he communicates using only a few words.

Summer with it’s slower pace is the perfect time to take a moment as Paul did and give thanks to God for special people in your life. Then, take another moment to tell your special people, too. It takes only a few minutes and words to make a difference in someone’s life, one that may carry through generations.

Here are a few tricks to help excite your kids (and maybe yourself!) about writing letters:

• Look for fun stationery at a nearby dollar store.
• Let your kids choose stickers to decorate the envelope
• Buy them their own sheet of stamps. There are a lot of designs to pick from at the post office.
• Gather at the kitchen table and encourage every family member to write a letter. (This is also a great time to teach your kids how to address an envelope.)

If you don’t have time to shop, a piece of notebook paper and a pencil from their backpack works just as well. Remember what really matters, and that is the words themselves.

Happy writing!

Hear me out, y’all.

A family vacation sounds the exact opposite of simple summer fun. The planning, the packing, the paying. Also, the laundry. How often have you returned home (All. The. Laundry.) and wearily wished you could have a vacation to recover from your vacation?

Me, too.

Pictures are popping up in my Facebook memories this week of our family road trip last summer. Jeff, Abby Kate, Lily and I drove from our home in Alabama to the Grand Canyon, exploring more than 3,500 miles over seven states. It was an incredible nine days together and we are ready without doubt or hesitation ready to get on the road again.

Not everyone has the time or money to indulge an extended, expensive trip. I know because growing up, my family didn’t. I was 9-years-old when we took our first family vacation. We traveled to Chattahoochee, Florida to see my Aunt Betty and her family. I also recall family trips to Gatlinburg, TN and Panama City Beach, FL. But there was one vacation we played on repeat: an Atlanta Braves baseball game and overnight stay in Stone Mountain, Georgia. I have faded photographs of hiking and pedal boats, my brothers and I squinting our eyes at the sun in the southern summer heat.

Travel, however near or far, is something a lot of us take for granted. We learned just how much when COVID restricted and even cancelled our vacation plans. Several of my friends are just now taking trips they intended in 2020. For all the curses we have uttered at COVID I can recognize one gift, and that is the ways the pandemic re-introduced the value of home. 

COVID pushed me to be creative within my family’s four walls. I was inspired one evening to plan a camp-themed movie night. We made s’mores and hot dogs in our oven, played tic-tac-toe with sticks and rocks from our yard, and watched the original Parent Trap movie starring Haley Mills. Abby Kate and Lily loved it! The evening allowed me to share a fun memory about the summer my cousin Donna and I watched The Parent Trap on VHS (“What’s a VHS tape, Mom?”) so many times we memorized the entire movie. My brothers were annoyed enough that they hid the tape!

Maybe you’re parked at home because of a crowded schedule or creeping gas prices. In what small ways can you make memories?  Your family doesn’t have to travel far to enjoy intentional, uninterrupted time together. We see God’s goodness reflected in the people we love, not just the places we visit. The trip you take could be as close as your living room, your vacation a break from the real world of email or virtual world of video games. The goal, regardless of destination, is simple summer fun.

As you consider what’s left of your summer, here is my encouragement to you:

• There is remarkable fulfillment to hear my girls say “I’ve been there!” when they hear mention of faraway places. Once in a lifetime travel is a gift. If you can, go.
• Trips that turn into tradition are special, too. They forge a family bond that is uniquely yours and will hold belonging and nostalgia in ways you may not see right now.
• Don’t dismiss the small moments you create at home. A staycation may be exactly what you need to see God’s goodness in your everyday life.

The Bible tells time and again the significance held in little things: lilies (Matthew 6), sparrows (Matthew 10), a mustard seed (Matthew 13). Coincidentally, those same things can lead you into simple summer fun.

“Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow; they don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that note even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these!” (Matthew 6: 28)

“Aren’t two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s consent.” (Matthew 10:29)

“It’s the smallest of all seeds, but when grown, it’s taller than the vegetables and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.” (Matthew 13:32)

“I tasted honeysuckle!” Abby Kate practically shouted to me as she clamored away from the crowd of students waiting to be picked up from the afternoon car line.

She haphazardly shed her backpack as she climbed into the car, chatting so excitedly I could hardly understand what happened in P.E. class. She told me she and some friends were walking the woods behind her middle school when a classmate named Kate spotted honeysuckle and taught her how to try it.

“I pinched off the end and pulled out the piece with honey on it and put it in my mouth,” she described. “It tasted sweet. I liked it!”

I was stumped for a moment. This child of mine, who turns up her nose at tasting any new food I put on the table tasted without hesitation a flower she found in the woods.

“Have you ever tried it?” she asked.

I smiled as I told her that I had, in fact, tasted honeysuckle. The memories are fuzzy – it’s been more than 35 years – but I remember enough.

Honeysuckle vines grew at the top of a hill behind my childhood home. Some mornings before school I would pick one of the fragrant flowers and taste its sweet honey. My mom says the honeysuckle still blooms, though she’s put up a privacy fence and we can’t get to them.

My daughters spend a lot of time at my mom’s house (my daddy passed away in 2008) and I love to share memories with them of what my home and neighborhood were like when I was growing up.

A few weeks after Abby Kate tasted honeysuckle we visited my husband’s home in Mississippi. Abby Kate discovered some honeysuckle vines behind my mother-in-law’s house. She stepped through the brush to show the yellow-and-white blossoms to her little sister Lily. Lily had to pick a few flowers to find one with enough honey to taste. She liked it, too.

Nature can pull us into deeper fellowship with God, and our sampling of honeysuckle made me think about the significance of honey throughout the Bible. Honey represents abundance in the Promised Land (Exodus 3:8) and provision in the wilderness (Matthew 3:4; Mark 1:6). Honey is so precious and pure that David uses it to express the beauty and worth of God’s own words (Psalm 19:10; Psalm 119:103). If our intention is to find God’s goodness in summer fun, honey seems a good place to start.

Summer is an invitation to connect with our kids in ways that aren’t complicated: exploring the outdoors, experiencing its beauty and enjoying the sweetness it gives to us. Our sample was honeysuckle but there are all kinds of fresh flavors to taste this season. Let your children pick one to try!  Find fun in tasting something fresh and sharing simple pleasures.

Whatever summer food you choose to satiate your stomach, remember nothing can satisfy like Jesus. He created this wonderful world and the goodness it gives. As we fill our bodies with nature’s incredible eats, let us not forget He is nourishment for our soul.

“How sweet Your word is to my taste – sweeter than honey in my mouth.” (Psalm 119:103)

Fresh watermelon.
Homemade ice cream.
A cold glass of lemonade.

We can literally taste summer and its refreshing sweetness. The season invites our senses to come alive and not just our taste buds. Summertime brings the smell of sunscreen, the sound of crickets, and the feel of sunshine on our skin.

Maybe we are more keenly aware of summer’s simple pleasures because we feel permission to slow down. The absence of schedules for our kids allows us room to relax. There aren’t homework assignments to check, lunches to pack, or car lines to join. We can trade our “to-do” list for a “today” list and indulge longer, lazy days.

My childhood summers were made of sleeping late, playing with friends, and a family vacation. The calendar for my daughters is different, crowded with assorted camps and organized activities. I don’t mind it, really. Summer camps give them experiences I can’t at home, things such as canoeing, horseback riding and rock climbing.

I’m careful to build in time to relax. Our rhythm is one week on, one week off. Rest is underrated. Kids need time and space to build forts from couch cushions, adventure through books and endlessly play video games. My brothers and I thumbed hours of Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros and RBI Baseball!

“We had a good childhood,” my little brother texted recently as we reminisced with our big brother about favorite cartoons. “I miss those days.”

I miss them, too.

About a year ago I made a list of things I enjoyed during summers as a little girl. I wanted my daughters to glimpse what life was like when I was their ages. I still carry those moments close and thought it would be meaningful to make new memories with Abby Kate and Lily with what I call “old-fashioned” fun.

Eating homemade ice cream.
Watching fireworks.
Catching lightning bugs.

These are the moments summer is made for. The leisurely pace opens our eyes to God’s creation and the beauty around us. We are not only allowed but encouraged to simply
 
Taste.
See.
Be.

The Bible tells us to “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalm 34:8) These words of praise and gratitude are my inspiration to find God’s goodness in simple summer fun. So, throughout June and July I’ll share 7 fun ways – one each week – to make memories with your kids this summer. None of the experiences has to be fancy and a few of them can be enjoyed for free!

I would love for you to join me as we play our way through summer. I will share our experiences on my website julieecholsreyburn.com and on Instagram @julieecholsreyburn using the #tasteseebe hashtag. Let’s make memories together this year – with our kids and with each other!