Summer on the Porch!

Summer to me means time on my front porch. Sometimes it's time for morning coffee as the sun warms us up, afternoon cocktails when we quit work a little early, or evening meals when we linger and talk about the day. They all seem better when they are on our porch. It’s where our family eats dinner each summer evening, where we watch thunderstorms roll in, where we watch the world go by and wave to neighbors. I love how our neighborhood is full of large front porches and how it brings a sense of community as people are out of their homes after being sequestered after our long winters.

I love to gather friends on our front porch for impromptu dinners, where we quickly defrost something and throw it on the grill or for our Friday night pizza nights. Sunday brunches with girlfriends have been hosted on the porch where we soak up the morning sunshine. We have even had people see us sitting and reading on a weekend afternoon and join us for drinks appetizers or dinner if we can talk them into staying.

Summer to me is a time for gathering. Friends, family, even strangers who become friends. Our porch is our gathering place, but even if you don’t have a front porch, you have a backyard, a balcony, or a front stoop. It’s really not the gathering place that makes the difference, it’s the very act of gathering together that matters.

It’s too easy for us to run through our weekly routines to get to the weekend, to get away from home for the weekend, work on the house, try to get ahead or caught up with work, or just crash in front of the TV and then start the week all over again. When do we break out of the routine and invite others into it? When we are purposeful and intentionally gather friends and family together, it just doesn’t have to be a big event or major undertaking. I think we've all gotten so used to not gathering, social distancing, and staying apart, but I want to spend this summer differently.

Sometimes the least amount of planning or most impromptu event makes for the most special. Leave a little room in your schedule and be intentional about sending an unexpected text asking friends to come over in an hour for dinner without having to bring a thing. It usually doesn't matter what we’re eating, someone can even pick up a pizza or takeout along the way, it’s just the fact that we are gathering together, catching up and enjoying a little time out of our daily routines. Gather those you love together this summer and see how much you add to their lives and yours.