AUGUST 2018

       Oh my, we find ourselves thinking August already.  It’s not just, where did the year go?; it’s, where did the summer go?  Oh well, we’re supposed to be having fun when time passes so quickly, aren’t we?                                                                                                                                           Let’s just enjoy the moment.  This is the month when we delight in the Heart of the Harvest.  Think peaches, corn-on-the-cob, fresh tomatoes and oh, so many zucchini squashes.
         July gave us a good dose of heat and humidity with occasional thunderstorms thrown in.  We can only wait and see what August will bring.  We do know that the days will be getting noticeably shorter; a reminder that we should take pleasure in the present – it can only get darker and colder from here.
        How often we forget to take pleasure in each moment.  Even when we are struggling our way through difficult times or carrying the burden of worry, if we take the time to reflect on our lives in general, we usually find our present holds much to be thankful for.  And not just for that old standby, “It could have been so much worse.”  The problem of the moment may, indeed, be pretty horrific.  But, if, for instance, we have our eyesight, what pleasure we derive from looking upon a lovely flower or at someone we love.  If we can hear, what joy it is to be enveloped in great music or to be in conversation with an old friend.  If our tongue can taste, how delightful it is to indulge in that August corn-on-the-cob and fresh baked peach pie.  
          Our present may find us discouraged, in pain, frightened or lonely.  Or, it may find us on top of the world, reveling in vacation adventures or just relaxed and happy.    But, whether we are experiencing good times or bad, we know we have Someone who is always there.  Someone who rejoices to hear our prayers of thanksgiving when we count our blessings; who is the same Someone who understands our tears and hears our prayers when we go through the hard times.   
            May this August bring you the maximum moments of blessings and the minimum moments of trouble.  Enjoy the rest of the summer.        Virginia                                          Thus hath the Lord GOD shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit.        Amos 8:1