Summer deserves a post

But I was too busy doing summer to stop and tell you about it.

Someday I will tell you all about my summer of yoga, novel reading, running my first 5K in 10 years, buying a house, running through new streets, beach days (more than I can count), pool days, library days, cabin trip up north, Chicago weekend by train, packing boxes, unpacking boxes, painting, cleaning, making new friends, dinner parties, overnight guests, wild campfires, s'mores, moscato, nieces, nephews, rare walks with sisters, crepes, Nutella, Maya's piano practicing, Sophie's sermons, Maya's reading, getting my own classroom, moving in to said classroom, blogging about my Paris trip (oh, wait... I didn't finish that), soaking in my new hot tub, meeting new neighbors, making new friends, knowing old friends better, learning to study the Bible all over again, learning to pray, making almost every meal at home, picnics, peach pie, deep dish pizza, laughing a lot, crying too much, being a better friend (sometimes), failing at being a better friend (sometimes), never blogging like I thought I would, obsessing over beautiful paint colors, dreaming of old house charm, living in an old house and painting it, long walks and bike rides, organizing (but never enough), walking to dinner with friends, running with neighbor friends, Anne of Green Gables and popcorn movie nights with my girls, playing with doll houses and horses, meals in the porch room, one spontaneous garage sale, crazy all-nighters spent painting and unpacking boxes, waking up in a new house, being surrounded and loved by helpful friends and family, reading through Proverbs with my 2 little wisdom-seekers, living in a house forever free of Pull-ups, violin, viola, cello lessons echoing in a new living room, walking to work, staying up too late the night before teacher's meetings start.

So that was summer.  And now, school.

Sometimes the layers of sadness and brokenness and despair make it too hard to see all the beautiful.  The brightness and glory of all the good is clouded.  And all the overwhelming blessings, though they remain, seem less tangible than the sorrow.  The cynicism and darkness and pain of the world is sometimes just too thick.

Strength of heart and coldness of heart are hard to distinguish sometimes.  But eventually, both resources fail.  And my heart is just bare.

The things (and the people..and the Person) that are true and noble and lovely and right and pure and admirable and praiseworthy...are there in great abundance.  And my gratitude holds me up.  And I will think about such things.