A Poem for Summer

I usually don’t write poetry; I’m too much of a rule follower. :)

But as I prepared for teaching two creative writing classes in our homeschool co-op, I realized if I was going to talk with kids and teens about poetry, I needed to get poetry in my mind. I’ve been reading different types and styles and decided to try my hand at writing a free verse-inspired poem about our summer.

This was the Summer

This was the summer

I bought water balloons,

Which the kids filled

And flung around the yard.

This was the summer

For both new and familiar things:

Baseball and movie marathons,

Youth group and playdates;

Trying to say yes when possible.

This was the summer

Of a stomach bug

That knocked us out,

Of allergies

That tickled and itched.

This was the summer

We cuddled on hot days

Because next summer, will you ask?

We talked past bedtime

Because tomorrow, will you want to?

This was the summer

We ate ice cream and snow cones,

Of hiking, swimming, laughing;

For enjoying every moment we could

Because next summer won’t be the same.

At the beginning of the summer, I realized time is passing fast. My oldest is almost 13, quickly approaching the age of summer jobs and doing her own thing. These carefree days of simple joys experienced together won’t always be there. I know time changes things, not in a bad way, but life becomes different.

This summer, I wanted to set aside the things that could wait and be completely present for my kids when possible. I wanted to say yes to things that were nos in the past {like water balloons} and let them try new things {like baseball}.

It was a great summer. Full, exciting, memorable. This simple effort captures just a glimpse.

Photo by Sergey Shmidt on Unsplash

What I've been Doing....

It is July and summer is moving fast!

I always have a list of things I want to accomplish after school ends and before the next school year starts. Because I homeschool, there is only so much I can feasibly get done while also seeing to school each morning. So summers are not slow down times, just a change in focus. Here are a few highlights!

New Office!

In June, we wanted to make a few changes to the function of our house and that involved moving a lot of furniture, painting several rooms, and reorganizing some spaces. I was able to use Tommy’s former office space for my desk and books and it’s been wonderful to have a room with just my crafting, writing, and reading things all available. The kids still bring their toys in and make background noise for my writing efforts but I honestly didn’t think that would change.

Writing!

I have slowly been researching, reading, and making notes about rest. I’m considering things like why it’s important, why it gets pushed away, how an attitude against rest is harmful, biblical examples and implications, and more. It’s definitely been a challenge and growing experience for me because I’ve struggled to rest for years. I feel like I’m wasting time, not being as profitable, etc. Studying the biblical purpose and necessity for rest has been eye opening. I hope to share more in future posts!

Newsletter!

I am not tech savvy. In building and modifying my website, YouTube was my mentor and Google was my friend. I’ve been wanting to start a monthly newsletter for quite awhile but it’s turned out to be more complicated than it seems! {Maybe it’s just me.} With some help from Tommy and again turning to YouTube experts, I think we’ve got it figured out! I will hopefully have a form on this website soon where you can sign up!

My purpose in having a newsletter is multi-faceted. It allows me to connect with people who are interested in what I write even if they aren’t active on social media. It also is easier to post links to things I’m using and loving, articles I learned from, and other random tidbits.

Homeschool!

Summer wouldn’t be complete without planning for the new school year! I’m going to have a pre-preschooler, second grader, and fifth grader in the classroom. I’m nervous {fifth grade math is more complicated than I remember!} but also excited. I’m planning some fun new things we haven’t done before {more coming in a future post!}, my kids requested more art projects, and I hope to incorporate some fun poems to our day. Planning the school year and researching materials is always fun for me. Just a little more and I’ll start ordering our supplies!

So that’s the summer so far! We also went camping in April, piano recital in May, finished AWANA, hosted our church family for a backyard picnic, enjoyed playdates, family movie nights, days in Grammy’s pool, the library summer reading challenge…and we still have July!! I hope your summer is off to a fun start!

Photo by Joanna Kosinska on Unsplash