Summer tag #s 6 and 7

Okay, I didn't answer #s 6 and 7 in the summer tag so here goes:

6) What books do you plan to read this summer?
I'm currently reading "Three Cups of Tea" by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin and loving it, especially seein' as how I'm hoping to go to India this fall. The book is set in Pakistan/Afghanistan but it still gives a sense of the cultural differences. On my nightstand is a stack of books but I'm too lazy to turn the spines around and read the titles to type into this list...plus the stack is perilously high and will certainly topple so I'm probably gonna just start at the top and work my way down. I know one of the books is "A Grand Obsession" about the building of pianos...and one is "In the Eye of the Storm" by Bishop Gene Robinson...and about 12 others. I'll keep y'all updated.

7) Is summer a help or a hindrance to your faith?
Good question. Any season or geographical location or emotional state can affect my faith at any given time...No, wait, that's not exactly true. I believe that faith is a gift. I've been given this gift. I don't need proof, I just have faith. Usually pretty blind faith. I believe that God is good even though there is evil in the world. And I believe in the doctrine of apokatastasis.
I enjoy the beauty of creation in all the seasons. I'm able to spend more time outdoors in the summer, so that's a way to help my faith. Of course getting into a blazing hot car in the middle of summer and finding that one of my daughters has accidentally left a sippy cup of milk under the seat...well, it doesn't affect my faith in God but it affects my faith in my kids...In upstate, NY, many Episcopalians tend to take the summer off from church. This can make it hard to stay motivated. So this summer I decided to take 8 weeks of sabbatical. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
That's all I'm sayin'...

Maybe I'll blog more during my sabbatical!
Peace,
RevMutha