As North Texas settles into what promises to be one of our hottest summers on record, I’m challenged to imagine frolicking summer fun here. Rather, in addition to contemplating where to vacation for cooler weather, I’m meticulously planning all my comings and goings to avoid being out during the hottest part of day (which is really all day). Like most of you, I strategize to get parking closest to the buildings I’m going into; better yet, I seek out places that have covered or underground parking. I also try to figure out what to wear to look good and stay cool—or just stay cool.

As we learn in our instruction manual, the Bible, in Genesis 8:2, even the summer heat is part of our Creator’s fine-tuned plan of provision for us and this wonderful Earth we’re privileged to inhabit. However, this extreme heat, like other extreme weather events much of the world has been experiencing, is the Earthly manifestation of imbalance, illness or “dis-ease”—similar to when we get a sore throat, stuffy nose, cough and fever. These are signs that something’s wrong with us, whether it’s a cold or COVID or something else. There’s a name for this illness that our planet Earth has caught: it’s called climate change, and it’s due to global warming. Seems to me it's more like high blood pressure or cancer than a cold, because scientists say it won’t just run its course and go away; rather, it’s going to require some intentional and serious intervention, or it will get worse and worse.

The good news is that the summer heat brings God’s bounty of wonderfully diverse produce to sustain us and other living things. One of the pleasures that makes me feel like I’m “summering” is enjoying the colorful, luscious fruits that are at peak harvest now. This year in North Texas we have watermelon so sweet and plentiful that they’ve been talking about it on the local news, and prices are lower than they’ve been in several years.

We’re blessed in North Texas because we’re surrounded by amazing farms and ranches that supply us with fruits, vegetables, meats and dairy. This wonderful provision of our needs is mostly within 100 miles of the Metroplex, and we get to be the happy reapers of this harvest. If you’re wondering where to go to partake, check out our annual Farmers Market and Everything Healthy Food Guide on pages 17 through 34. Whether you want to find a nearby farmers market, a farm where you can buy fresh-picked fruits or veggies, a working farm where you can get out and pick your own or a farm that offers CSAs—boxes of fresh-picked produce regularly delivered to you—our pull-out guide tells you where to go. We also include resources if you’re not necessarily into cooking, but want healthy or organically prepared meals and services. We’re glad to be publishing this resource guide for the North Texas community for the eighth year because we know it is widely used.

In this month’s feature article on the Healthy Food Movement, Bob Benenson writes that the pandemic spawned something beneficial: a noticeable trend toward healthier eating, evidenced in part by the explosive growth and success of local farmers markets like the ones here in North Texas. Because farmers markets were open as usual during the pandemic, people who went there needing groceries began to see the benefits of eating more healthily—not the least of which is stronger immunity against COVID and many other ailments. On page 18, we have some Tips for Savvy Shopping at Farmers Markets. Here’s a special one: get up and out early, because many farmers markets either sell out quickly or close at noon.

The healthy eating movement isn’t just good for people; it’s also good for the Earth. As always, it’s our goal to help you live a healthier life on a healthy planet. Make sure to pull out our 2022 Farmers Market and Everything Healthy Food Guide and keep it handy until next July, when we’ll give you another one.

Blessings until next month