What can I do? Or what can my children do this summer?
When I was a child, I couldn’t wait for summer vacation to start! I would be FREE! In a manner of speaking, of course.
Mama and Daddy both worked full time. A lady kept house for us, cooked, and did all the things that had to go on... and she tried to keep up with me.
I was careful to always give her an approximate, true, location for where I would be during the day. Hard to believe no cell phones to keep tabs on us. From morning to supper time I was off! Busy with neighborhood friends. Places to explore and ride my horse on those long, wonderful, hot days.
I didn’t carry a water bottle. We found places to get water along our way. One favorite place my horse, Moose, and I liked to stop was a free flowing artesian spring where the water tasted a little strong but was so cold and delicious.
What else did we do? Church camp was a biggie for us. We were in a girls group that studied the Bible, crafts, missions, and there was a wonderful camp near Jackson where our church girls could spend a whole week. We learned about missionaries, the world, nature, swam, found turtles, loved the campfires, sang, and made new friends.
Our church had Vacation Bible School and it was great! Refreshments made specially by the ladies in the church, more crafts, Bible stories sometimes with puppets, games, singing, outside play, and marching in with the American flag, the Christian flag, and the Bible.
When we got older we were the helpers at VBS.
I rode my faithful bike to the town swimming pool. To my eyes it was huge! There was a little kids area and a deeper part for older kids and adults. The water was always freezing and the blue painted concrete made me feel like I was in a blue ocean.
I managed to bust open my eyebrow when trying to go up the slide that had water going down it to make it easier to slide down. Thankfully, mama was off that day and was with me.
We had big wars with the boys in the neighborhood which sometimes included us hiding up in trees and throwing pieces of watermelon at them. In the end of our battles, we were always still friends.
Plan for your children to have time to breathe this summer. Let them go to church Bible schools, send them to camps where they can grow spiritually, listen to to what they say, and have band aides handy. “Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from Him.” Psalm 127:3.
