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Hope and hilarity
By Chuck Terrill
Last Updated: July 29, 2015

Awesome sights and sounds of summer

When you park your car at church, make sure you lock your doors. Of course, you are always well advised to lock your car. But we have been reemphasizing it with our church folks, lately. No, its not because there has been another rash of burglaries. You will want to lock you car because it is the height of the zucchini season.

That's right. Our gardeners have more squash than they can give away, so they are sneaking recycled blue Walmart bags full of squash into the back seats of unsuspecting parishioners. Whatsoever you sow must be reaped, and it is mighty hard to see a baseball bat sized zucchini go to waste.

You probably have your favorite summertime memories. I remember the swimming hole on the little river west of town. Summer meant sand in the hair and sunburn on the back.

There were bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwiches eaten at picnics or hamburgers cooked on a grill in the backyard. Just for memory's sake, add in some cold lemonade, roasted hotdogs, watermelons and corn on the cob. That was summertime!

Remember how the sound of an evening baseball game traveled all the way from the diamond into your backyard? Remember the fishing trips? Remember leisurely riding your bike around town all day long? Forget about the summer colds, the hay fever and the poison ivy.

Forget about the heat, too. We didn't complain much about the weather because we didn't know anything about air conditioning. There wasn't any AC in the family car or the family home. A musty smelling swamp cooler was about as good as it got.

We didn't worry too much about perspiration odor, either. Maybe it was because we all smelled pretty much the same.

To select the most pleasant summer aroma would be difficult. I remember the magic that was happening in small, hot, crowded kitchens. The smell of jams and jellies being made with fresh fruits: apples, blackberries and strawberries. Remember the smell of green beans cooking waiting to be canned? All of the tomatoes that couldn't be eaten fresh off the vine were cooked down into sauce and canned for the winter. I still like the aroma of briny crocked pickles. I like the overpowering fragrance of lilacs that enveloped the house. I like the smell of wild grape blossoms out in the ditch. Nothing beats the fresh aroma of rain on the late afternoon of a very hot day.

We are in the middle of a glorious summer. The sights, smells and sounds of summer surround those who have the good sense to appreciate them. My prayer is that you would enjoy every breathtaking moment of summertime.

"For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3:1).

Chuck Terrill is pastor of Valley Center Christian Church. He can be reached at chuck@valleycenterchristianchurch.org or 755-1233.




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