Tag: summer

Summer Harvest Memories: From Garden to Table

There are two songs that ring in my head when I say the word summer. The first song is “Summertime and the livin is easy”, the other one is “We’re have’n a heatwave…a tropical heatwave!” I usually sing both these lines together and it works. They describe perfectly what summer in southern Ontario has been this year. It is a long time since I can recall having such a long hot summer. For those of us who are not our best in the heat it has been somewhat challenging. Still it has also been delightful for those who enjoy being outside on hot, sunny days. I must say I have avoided going out in the mid day just to avoid the heat. Still the early mornings and evenings are most often delightfully pleasant to be out and about. I only head out in mid day when I have to. It has been great beach and cottage weather for those who are fortunate to travel to both.

Time to Relax

What I love most about summer is the relaxed paced of strolling through my days. I have fewer commitments and more time to simply muse. I like to sleep in and linger over my morning coffee. I consider the simple things of life that can be overlooked when I get busy. I love to spend long hours reading a good novel! I leave the non-fiction for another time when I want to dig deeper.

Eating Local Produce

Now that summer is half over we are making our way through August. I find myself grateful for the summer harvest. There is nothing like a fresh ripe peach or the taste of a tomato right off the vine. I remember when I lived in the country and had a vegetable patch in our backyard. First the beans ripened. My then two year old daughter sat between the rows with a bowl between her legs. She helped pick the beans and also ate them. After the beans came the tomatoes. The first year I planted the garden I had no idea what I was doing. I planted twenty-two tomato plants. My neighbour laughed. I discovered later why. I had bushels of tomatoes that all seemed to ripen at once. I learned how to make and can everything tomato. I had shelves of chili sauce, spaghetti sauce, stewed tomatoes, and tomato juice! What I learned later is that sometimes canned tomatoes explode.

One day in the fall while making dinner upstairs in the kitchen I heard a crash downstairs. I went down to investigate and found two jars of exploded tomatoes all over the fruit cellar! I consulted with my neighbour who was experienced in canning. She explained to me that the seal was not tight and the tomatoes fermented. Needless to say I only planted 4 tomato plants the next year. We ate them fresh. No more canning for me.

Corn season has started here and the farmer’s markets are busy. Sadly, I must avoid the corn as my body can no longer digest it. I love the flavour of corn on the cob dripping with butter. Again, this is a memory of the past. Now is also the season for fresh dug new potatoes. Oh how love them. This time of year I am so blessed to savour the flavours of local produce. I love that the food I eat is grown in the soil close to where I live.

Choosing the Food We Eat All Year Round

We have all become so used to eating fruits and vegetable grown far away and transported into our community. I wonder what it would be like to only eat foods that are native to our own locale. I guess that is what the 100 mile diet is all about. What do you think dear reader? Do like to eat tropical foods from far off lands? Or do you like to eat local? I think I am more local though I do love tropical fruits like pineapple, oranges, lemons and limes. I also like vegetables that come in the winter like leafy greens that are grown in greenhouses.

There are so many choices now. We live in multicultural communities. The food offered in our local grocery stores and markets include a variety of fruits and vegetables. The foods are geared to so many different cuisines. We can choose whatever suits our pallet.

Gratitude and Privilege

We are so fortunate and privileged to have the choices we do. Sadly there are so many around the world who go to bed hungry every night or are malnourished. Knowing that is hard for me. Still I want to be grateful for our harvest bounty. Let’s take time to give thanks and remember how graced we are.

Posted on by Beth 0

Finding Peace in Quiet Summer Days

The summer is well underway and life is very quiet for me these days.  What I mean by that is there is not much I feel like doing.  I am taking the summer “off”. I spend hours scrolling on my phone or IPAD.  It is a constant companion as I train my brain with word games, online card games and connecting with “friends” on Facebook.  I have been considering giving it all up for the summer and just being quiet with no technical distractions.  Then I question whether I can actually do it.  It has become such a strong habit that I wonder if it would qualify as an addiction.  Or is it just how I companion myself?

The truth is summers have always been quiet for me ever since I can remember.  I spent a lot of time on my own feeling bored when I was young. My friends were often away at family cottages or on family road trips while my family stayed home.  One summer I worked as a Mother’s Helper and went to their cottage with them.  As a teenager I got a summer job working at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) in Toronto for two weeks at the end of August till Labour Day.  I worked at a booth in the Better Living Building for a company called GH Wood where they displayed a million dollars in cash.  They were actually a company that made and sold cleaning products which is why they were in the Better Living building.  It was a boring job just standing there in some silly costume for six hours at a time but it gave me pocket money which I enjoyed having.  I had fun talking with the security guards who were there to protect the money.

For a few years in my early teens, my family rented a cottage in Sudbury Ontario for the summer.  Who goes to Sudbury for the summer?  Nobody I knew.  It was ok I guess as I did make some friends there and we got to go water skiing and surfboarding when our friends Stella and Jack came to visit with their boat.

The truth is I always had very little energy to do much in the summer especially when it was hot out.  That didn’t change as I got older.  In fact, it actually got worse.   As I aged I felt less and less like doing much of anything in the summer.  I have accepted that and have learned to enjoy it.  

What I love doing now is to watch baseball on TV.  The Toronto Blue Jays are like family to me.  I watch them and cheer them on as if they were all my sons.  It seems crazy to me that I enjoy the game so much still they are good company for me on a very quiet Sunday afternoon.

I sometimes feel sad and lonely on weekends, especially Sundays because I have always thought of it as family day.  Growing up I spent Sunday afternoons with my family and watching golf on TV with my dad. That is if I wasn’t having a nap.   Mom always made a good Sunday supper and we all gathered around the table together sometimes with special guests joining us.  In the summer dad would always barbecue. 

The hard part now is there is no one to remember those stories with or tell them too.  My sister who lives miles away is often busy with her family on Sundays and my kids have their own lives to live. Writing the stories is not the same as telling them around the dinner table, still I am doing my best to write them down.

When I was married Sunday was a work day.  My husband, a minister, would work in the morning and then often sleep on the sofa in afternoon. If he had people he had to visit in hospital, then he would head out.  I tried to get in the habit of making a good Sunday supper like my mom did.  Still I was on my own a lot with the kids, unless they were out playing with their friends, then I was just on my own. I didn’t always want to cook a big dinner.  It was a lonely time for me during those days when we lived far away from family.  When we moved back to our home town my in-laws often hosted Sunday suppers and it was a command performance for all the kids.  We were expected to show up and dress up.  My mother in law said if she was going to go to the trouble of making a nice dinner and setting a nice table then we could put some effort into dressing for the occasion — Sunday best.  Summer time was considered dress casual.

I now no longer plan things for after church on Sunday.  In fact, I enjoy that quiet time where I can read and perhaps even enjoy an afternoon nap.  Sunday suppers are no longer big meals unless I am invited out.  It is more like grazing all afternoon while watching baseball.  I wonder how many others who are older like me take a break from cooking on Sunday?

Being quiet by myself with time on my own in the summer is something I am practising and getting comfortable with.  There are days I simply let the time pass without really accomplishing much and that is ok because being present to what is in my day to day living gives me a sense of purpose. I am so grateful for all that I have. I am happy to have a lovely home to be in. I am thankful for a healthy body and for all the times I do spend with my family either in person or on the phone. I feel lonely and bored sometimes and that is ok too. I can change that anytime I choose to. I appreciate that the connection and love I have with my family and friends is much more than so many people have.

I have learned to make peace with loneliness by spending time quietly on my own. I enjoy my own company and the tranquility of these restful summer days. Being bored is just another way of saying I want to engage more with life. Figuring out how to do that is my Spiritual work. Is summer a busy time for you or are you taking time out from your busy lives to be quiet and rest?

Posted on by Beth 1

Embracing Summer Thrills and Joy: A New Perspective on Life

Summer in my part of the world is a time when people slow down and try to get away to relax and take more time for play. I often hear from those who enjoy getting away to a beach or cottage where they can relax and do some summer reading. It is a time when a lot people find they feel more creative and want to be out in their gardens or in their studios painting. Writers take time away as an opportunity to envision what they may write about next or perhaps hole themselves away to write their next novel or short story.

The days of sunlight are much longer and the energy of the sun can inspire and guide us. There are also the summer storms that roar in sometimes without notice and we are caught in a downpour. Some people love to watch the thunder and lightening that often accompanies thunderstorms in my part of the country. The crash and roar of the skies opening up to release a build up of electrical energy is both invigorating and sometimes unnerving.

For me summer brings a mix of emotions. I have noticed my biorhythms are at their lowest in summer. Wanting to rest and lay low with little ambition to do much I take it easy. The hot weather discourages me from being outside or being too active. My body does not do well in the heat. I have friends, on the other hand, who love it and feel energized by the warming of the sun and hot humid air that makes them sweat. Not me! I am a cool weather person.

Still this summer I have had a great time just hanging out with friends and enjoying the lazy, hazy days of summer. I love watching baseball and look forward to attending a Blue Jays game in Toronto before the end of the season. Oh I know the Blue Jays have not been doing well this year still they are my team and I stand by them no matter what.

This past weekend I had the great pleasure of going to the motor racetrack with my son in law and grandson to watch them both race. My son in law raced his Mustang GT on the road track and my ten year old grandson raced his ATV four wheeler on the drag strip. It was so much fun to watch them. They are both amazing drivers. The biggest thrill of the day though was when my son in law asked me if I wanted to go around the track with him. I sat in the passengers seat while he raced around the track. We did two laps and I have never gone that fast in my life. Whizzing around tight corners and going full out on the straight away was so exciting for me. I don’t know what made me say yes because I am usually really scared of speed. This time though something inside me said yes, go for it. I am so glad I did. My son in law told me I was a real champion. I told him I am not here for a long time. I am here for a good time and that was definitely a good time.

I am finding at this stage of my life it is more about finding that thrill in life than it is about staying safe. Not that long ago I was in survival mode and doing whatever I could to stay the course and keep myself from falling off the edge. Now I live on the edge looking out into the unknown excited to discover what is out there and what new things I can learn about. It is no longer about maintaining the status quo and perhaps never was for me. I have always been courageous and wanting to see life from different vantage points. Being in the passenger seat of a race car was definitely a new vantage point and gave me lots to consider about life in general.

So dear friends, wherever you are, whatever stage of life you are in I wish for you a life this summer and beyond that brings you something that gives you a thrill and offers you a new perspective. Life is meant to lived full out and also to be savoured. I have learned that you do not have to get away to a beach or cottage to have a good summer. We can have the best experience of our lives at home with ourselves or sitting on a park bench watching the birds and squirrels enjoying life in the trees. Wherever you are and whatever you get up choose to make it fun and joyful for yourself. Happy Summer!

Posted on by Beth 3