Memories of Summer in Alabama

What are your summer memories? Today, on Independence Day, I’m sitting in my house with the air running like I like it.  I’m not afraid of work, but I do NOT like to sweat.  My childhood memories of summer in Alabama consist of very hot days spent outside, all day long, running barefoot in the dead, brown grass and the dry dirty dirt.  Sweating and dirt-clad from head to toe.  If I wasn’t on my bicycle exploring, I would let my imagination run wild as my brother and I created a game or built a fort. Our summers in Alabama are very hot and very humid, but we didn’t seem to mind back then. Of course, it didn't matter if we DID mind because the moment we tried to run into the house, we would get booted right back outside. Remember those words "if you go out, you STAY out"? That was daily followed in my house. We only had window fans which did nothing but blow hot air around, but at least there was a breeze!

Happy Independence Day!

It’s been a hot minute since I’ve written on here, but life has been crazy busy.  This being a holiday weekend and the fact that life has slowed down a bit, I wanted to take some time to write.  I’m not great at it but do enjoy it. Kenneth and I thought that after our daughters were grown and married, we would have more time to ourselves, but those grandkids are keeping us running.  I have helped my youngest daughter a good deal since the birth of her baby girl in April.  What a sweet, chunky thing she is!  The baby, not my daughter.  The older grandkids have been busy with sports and activities, so we’ve supported them as well.  Then there’s our, soon to be, 4-year old granddaughter who comes over about every other weekend to stay at “MimiPops” as she calls it.  I love that we are inseparable in her little mind.

About every other Sunday, our whole crew comes over after church for lunch or dinner.  With our new addition, we now total 13. It gets a bit cramped in our little farmhouse, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.  As I grew up, we didn’t have family nearby to gather much at all except for Thanksgiving and Christmas, so other than my brother, I only had a couple of friends that I would spend some time with.  I guess that’s why our family gathering every chance we can is so important to me. 

If you’re blessed with a strong family bond, please don’t take it for granted.  Make time for each other. Make that phone call to check in on them.  Plan to get together.  Send a text of encouragement.  In this fast-paced world we live in, time is passing by so quickly.  If we’re not careful, we will look up from our busy lives and realize that we are strangers to those we love.

On this Independence Day, I am so thankful for the price that countless people paid for my freedom, and most of all thankful for the price that my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, paid for my salvation. Freedom isn’t free!

Freedom Isn't Free!