A Prayer for Summer
For pool time, watermelon, and those less-than-carefree days
Each week, after I write the main post, a few days later, I send an accompanying prayer related to the topic. I am doing in this in part for me: I always am on the hunt for more written prayers. I use written prayers often in my work to pray for larger groups, but I also love written prayers for my personal piety. Sometimes it is nice when I do not have the words to use someone else’s.
The below prayer is in response to my post on summertime suppers.
God of these long, sunlight-filled days—peppered with the sudden quick thunderstorm too—
It’s summer. Okay, maybe not technically, according to the calendar. But we are all in summer mode: grilling, staying up too late, road tripping, family visiting, long weekending, watermelon carving, sunscreen slathering, popsicle eating, sweating…so much sweating.
Sometimes we feel relaxed and at ease, as though time is just floating gently by.
Other times we feel on edge. There are too many people around us in the house, all.the.time. We are hot, all.the.time. And sweating…so much sweating.
The rest of the world feels a bit like that too—this weird mix of carefree summer happy and tensions boiling over, deadly in many cases.
Maybe this is just what summer is—living in the juxtaposition.
But isn’t that every season, really?
Both-and. Delightful and challenging. Pure and troubled. A mixed bag.
And here you are, holding us up in it all. Amen.
Shortcut summer suppers
I find dinnertime creeping later and later as we get further into the summer months. We stay at the pool or the kids play outside in the evening hours, so I want to pull dinner together quickly and easily. Summer produce opens up new meal possibilities, and sometimes I am inspired to try new recipes, but more often, I want to go by feel and just throw a little of this and a little of that on a sheet pan and improvise as I go.