Summers have become my long-awaited season to hit the pause button on so many things. Homeschool co-op, Awanas, and weekly field trips are on hold until early fall. I also like to cut ties with social media during this summer Sabbath margin. We tend to spend these sweltering Texas days in air conditioned abodes, or on the front porch at Hudson Acres — where there are plenty of tall trees and prairie breezes to make the heat bearable.

As an introverted mama, I’ve come to appreciate these special times when we’re able to unplug and disengage a bit. I love my people fiercely, yet constant engagement without time for introspection leaves me exhausted. Traditionally, people take a break from education during summer months, but I’ve found this is when we hit out sweet spot. The outside world doesn’t impede on our family time. We’re not rushing out the door or focused on a never-ending to-do list. We get more uninterrupted cuddle time and less stress. Morning time, poetry teatime, picture study, nature study, and an overhaul of literature faithfully accompany us through June, July, and August.

I’m able to read life-giving books, sit more presently at the feet of Yeshua, and inhale the gardenia-scented breeze in my garden. It’s pure bliss that prepares me for the schedule that autumn brings.

My Charlotte Mason reading group is even pausing halfway through Miss Mason’s principles to read Northanger Abbey and David Copperfield — does it get any better?! Iced tea and homemade cold brew coffee will lace these delicious days of grace, and I will drink deeply from the wellsprings of life (both caffeinated and decaffeinated). May you avoid those pesky sunburns, and take hold of the beauty this season affords!