{Therapist Corner} In the Summertime…

This post is part of a monthly series brought to you by the music therapists at Noteable Progressions. Join us here for book reviews, thought provoking conversation, interesting information, and other random musings. Do you have something you would like our therapists to address? Leave your idea in the comments, and we will get back to you.

It’s summer! A time to get away with family and friends! A time to relax and recharge! But sometimes… that relaxing doesn’t really recharge us. I know that there are times I will have nothing on my calendar for a day, so I do nothing. But I don’t end that day feeling more recharged; I’m more tried then when I started. Or I have nothing on my calendar, so I fill it with so many recharging activities that it is hard to feel relaxed afterward. So what can we do about it?

I am learning, oh so slowly, that relaxing is hard unless I am doing something to recharge in a relaxing place. Finding a relaxing place can be hard, maybe even more so with children (one place that relaxes me is the park, and you can read more about that here), but finding something that can recharge you is equally as hard. For me to feel recharged, I have to feel like I haven’t wasted time. Sometimes that is watching sports on tv, sometimes it’s going for a run, or (most recently) it’s reading. If I’m going to be honest, I didn’t always enjoy reading. Most books I read when I was younger were assigned, and some I would love. Others, not so much. But now, give me a good book and a free afternoon at the park (or the beach!), and I will feel like it was an afternoon well spent and be recharged for the week ahead. I credit some of this to my dad reading out loud to me as a child… and I will still sometimes get audiobooks from the library and listen to someone else read to me as I color.

If you are looking for something that can recharge you or your family this summer, I encourage you to discover (or rediscover) books! I want to share a few suggestions with you to get you started. All of these books I am going to share can be found at the library and are usually in the children’s (or young adult) section, but I assure you anyone will enjoy them and learn something from them. I wanted to share them because they are perfect for reading aloud, which I would highly recommend if you want to be reading as a family this summer!

• Wonder by R. J. Palacio
• Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
• Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt
• The Giver by Lois Lowry

What place is most relaxing for you or your family? What activities do you find most recharging? Are there any books that you think others should check out this summer? Have you read any of the books I suggested? Share your thoughts and ideas in the comments, so we can all work on being more relaxed and recharged this summer!