Summer’s subdued pace allows us time to pursue relationships.

Last week I reconnected with my cousins. John, Jim, and Patty hosted a memorial service for their mom (“Auntie Ann”) at the Wildlife Center in Wyckoff, her favorite place to walk. It was wonderful to relate with relatives who have grown distant but share many childhood memories. (Pictured are Jim, me, Brenda, my brother Jack, Lois; kneeling are Patty and John.)

Over the weekend Rich and I met with friends in Lancaster and saw Moses at Sight & Sound. As with our relatives, time has distanced us but our shared faith in Christ allowed us to quickly relate again.

Our daughter, Bethany, and grandsons, Jackson and Parker, will spend this week with us. We’ve planned outings and projects for shared fun and quality time. We will relate as only family can.

We hope to host barbecues this month when we will relate with friends from our past and friends newly made with stimulating conversation and refreshing laughter. We expect to share insights and dreams as we build each other up.

Take advantage of summertime’s slower tempo to relate with those you love and those you don’t yet know.

Summer offers us leisure time in the sunny outdoors without a schedule. It’s a great season to read those titles you jotted down on scraps of paper and torn napkins. Here are some of my favorite reads, listed by genre.

Historical fiction can be a frustrating genre if the author leans more to the fiction side. I’ve developed the habit of reading the endnotes first to learn which characters or accounts are the author’s and which are part of history. I thought these were excellent!

• Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker, Jennifer Chiaverini
• Becoming Mrs. Lewis, Patti Callahan
• The Last Bookshop in London, Madeline Martin

Mysteries—I confess, I love this genre! I didn’t list these above because they’re largely fiction but the historical settings are rich. Though fascinating, I’m thankful to live now, not then.

• The Lady Darby Mysteries by Anna Lee Huber is my all-time favorite series—I’m on a wait list for #12. They are set in Scotland in the early 1800’s.
• The Bess Crawford Mysteries by Charles Todd
• The Inspecter Pitt series by Ann Perry

History—The President and the Freedom Fighter, Brian Kilmeade—an absolute must-read, whatever your preferred genre.

Fun—amusing tales & entertaining characters—You cannot read them without smiling!

• 84 Charing Cross Road, Helene Hanff
• The Enchanted April, Elizabeth Von Arnim

Feed your spirit with these:

• Once Upon a Wardrobe, Patti Callahan (fiction—SO good)
• Improving with Age, Stuart & Jill Briscoe (I need the reminder!)
• Rumors of Another World, Philip Yancey (the supernatural is hidden in everyday life)
• Way of Healing, Hannah Hurnard (a bit challenging but served as a prompt to reread Hinds’ Feet on High Places)

Okay, friends, your turn! Share some of your favorites.