My Essay on How I Spent My Summer

Remember when the teacher was at a loss as to what to teach the first day of school so she told you to write an essay on how you spent your summer? That's what I am doing, writing my thoughts of this hot hot summer and where and how I spent my days.

I seriously cannot remember when it was worse for heat in this region. The media always makes it seem worse than it is, but maybe this year that was a good thing. Their insistence on keeping us up on excessive heat advisories has probably saved lives.

I really have spent most of my time inside, behind a computer, learning new software and educating myself on marketing. This will definitely become helpful with future books I am planning on writing.

As for writing, I have done very little, but the plotting and planning of said books has never stopped. I am really looking forward to getting back into the writing seat soon, probably after Labor Day.

There are so many books and stories to be written still, and so little time to get them all down. If I have learned one thing this long hot summer, it has been to make optimum use of my time. This will certainly benefit me as I get back into the swing of my life soon.

I do not garden, but this year after visiting Farmer's Markets and such, really did think about it. Maybe next year!

I have done NO yardwork this year at all. In fact, my poor hubby has barely kept the grass cut. This lapse in outside activity has a lot to do with these 101+ heat indexes but a little to do with our business and how busy it has been. We have a fellow coming this week to quote us on getting all the overgrowth cut back and here's hoping he can save us.

Other than that, my dears, there is little to report. I think this has really been a summer of retrospection and reflection on a really difficult winter. But as in all things, a new time is approaching.

I am stretching forward and hope to touch the cooler months ahead with renewed vigor. Hoping the very same for you!

Taking time out for LIFE

I recently (okay just this week!) took a few days off to vacation with my daughter as a sort of mom and kid thing but mostly to thank her for all the hard work she’s been putting in at college. She’s going to graduate on time, and with honors. I am very proud. When she asked me for a mother/daughter sort of vacation this year, I knew there was no way I would refuse her. Besides, I needed the time off and a little R and R as much as anyone.

Getting to the hotel was not difficult as it is in a nearby town. It is a casino resort hotel and totally a touristy sort of joint, but it has perks, like a pool. We wasted no time getting out there, either. Lord, it felt good to just sit in the abundant sunshine and read. I finished off the third Harry Potter book and got started on the fourth.

It occurred to me at the time that I do not do enough of this sort of thing. I haven’t really gotten near a pool or sunbathed in at least two years. It was heavenly. Swimming under the ninety degree sun was effortless and the water felt like you were sluicing through a velvet sheet.

We ended up eating a lot,(oh my, Paula Deen is the BEST COOK and I love her place!) resting a lot, reading a lot, and totally enjoying each other’s company. As she is a mere 21 and a baby to all sorts of legal age things, I corrupted her and showed her how to play the slots. It was a total utter hoot when she began talking to the machine begging it to give her a bonus round. I laughed a lot and feel as though we made some memories.

As I look back on those few precious days, I realize that this is the very thing that I needed to do the most to get back to writing. I needed to relax. I needed to refill. And we all must do that sometimes. It is just critical to our creative side to get the juices going.

If you haven’t taken time to do something good for yourself, I encourage you to do so. I have decided that I work entirely too hard. I spend six days working and one catching up and no time for the things that really matter. But not anymore.

From now on I am taking the advice of a magazine article I read while waiting on my massage at the spa at the hotel. From now on I am taking the Sabbath as a day of rest. God intended for man to work as hard as necessary all week long, but I don’t think he meant us to work on Sunday. He set the example and so, I am taking his lead. From now on I will not be doing anything for an entire twenty-four hour period from Saturday night at ten to Sunday night at ten. Nothing but resting, reading, and relaxing. Or maybe writing. I don’t consider writing work, well, at least not when I am mentally attuned to it.

I think our ancestors had it right. They took Sundays off. It was a holy day. Go to church, spend some down time just getting right with God, and forgetting that you have to do something. I hope I can put a few puzzles together, watch some good movies, work on my tan, and visit my kids.

Today is the first day of the rest of our lives. Let’s live it right.