All Summer Long

August 14, 2009 10:47 AM
Buddy Duncan
Summer is often the best time of the year to me; it seems more carefree than fall or spring, definitely more so than winter.
Summer days are longer with more time to play outside, ending gently as we watch the day fade into another beautiful sunset. Our home stays filled with the sounds of laughter as family and friends come to our lush beaches and share their vacations with us.
Kids are out of school and we live in a vacation mecca; most of our friends who live far away yearn for what is at our doorstep. Several times each week I fire up the grill and prepare for the weekends on the water; another day at Crab Island, the gulf or the bay. What a life!
The song “All Summer Long” recently made me nostalgic for summers of my youth. When I heard Kid Rock singing, it brought back memories of the first time I ever heard “Sweet Home Alabama.”
I was on a bus in southern Mississippi with 40 other high school students returning home to Alabama after a week at an International Junior Civitan Convention. After a week away from home learning about the perils of Communism and the strengths of Patriotism, I heard the immortal words of Ronnie Van Zandt and Lynyrd Skynyrd sing: “In Birmingham, they love the governor. Now we all did what we could do. Now Watergate does not bother me. Does your conscience bother you? Tell me true.”
It’s funny how after all these years we can hear a song of our past and the memories come flooding back. Certain songs evoke pleasant memories; others conjure up painful moments of days gone by. Hearing “All Summer Long” I recalled days of southern sunshine, tanning at the beach, saltwater fun, good food with good friends.
I find it interesting how so little has changed as the days have added up. Maybe simple pleasures are the best after all. Robert Brault has reminded us to: “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.” Laura Ingalls Wilder said, “It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.”
Just a little over a week ago one of my best friends survived a heart attack. I received the call from his wife while enjoying one of our beautiful summer days, out with friends, playing at the waters edge. Immediately, my sense of peace and serenity was challenged.
He is doing well now and we have since had a couple of long conversations about what is really important in life. Having a near death experience will do that for you; you suddenly are faced with evaluating life’s priorities.
A few weeks ago, one of my high school class mates called to ask for prayer regarding his recent diagnosis of Alzheimer’s. He is no longer employable and is wrestling with the serious issues of his future.
At the hospital, I see too many lives cut far too short. I share with those that will listen to me that we are having our life now. Not tomorrow. Not in some distant retirement. TODAY.
In this here and now, we are living the life God has given us. We can live fully, deeply engaged and thankful. One friend describes this kind of mindful living as “sucking the marrow out of the bone of life” (His mother says that sounds yucky, but I think it makes the point.)
If we’re not careful, it’s easy to live carelessly, shallowly, haphazardly … missing the blessings that surround us each day. Some of life’s simplest pleasures are yours to hold today.
Get your feet in the sand, feel it shift underneath you. Feel the wind in your face. Look into the eyes of someone you love and tell them how deeply you care for them. Don’t miss the day because of the busy-ness of your life.
You can have your best life now… All Summer Long.
The Rev. Buddy Duncan is the chaplain at Fort Walton Beach Medical Center. He can be reached at 315-7814.