Publisher - June 2026

"Summertime is the art
of doing less and feeling more."
— Anonymous —

Have you ever noticed how summer seems to fly by? It feels like it’s almost over right when you’re just getting started. Maybe it’s because summer days are long and lush, and we stay active and sleep fast. On Saturday, June 20, we will experience the Summer Solstice, which is the day of the year that gets the longest period of daylight and marks the official beginning of summer. Get ready for a whopping 14 hours and 14 minutes of daylight that day. Sounds like a beach day and backyard cookout just waiting to happen. The days that follow the summer solstice will get shorter and shorter until December 21, when we will only have 10 hours and 4 minutes of daylight, which on the bright side is perfect for Christmas lights.

While walking the beach last month, I came up with a plan to make my summer last and to soak in every drop of magic it has to offer. I’m calling it my “Summer Soul-stice.” I want to spend this summer nourishing my soul and rejuvenating my spirit. Coincidentally, (if there are coincidences) the theme of this month’s issue is “Salt and Soul, and I’m so ready to find my lost shaker of salt.

It has been said that salt water is the cure for everything—sweat, tears, or the sea, so it’s a given for salt and soul to pair up as a powerful duo of recreation, reflection, relaxation and freedom.

Are you ready to let freedom ring and get salty?

If you are reading this, the beach is closer than it appears! How many of you have forgotten you live near the beach? Just think, you could live in Belle Fourche, South Dakota, the place geographers call the North American Pole of Inaccessibility, a.k.a. the point farthest from any coastline in North America. That’s right, their nearest ocean shoreline is 1,030 miles away. Now, what’s the excuse for not getting your “toes in the water, ass in the sand? And who doesn’t crave “not a worry in the world, a cold beer in my hand?” (Zac Brown Band)

There was a time I went to the beach nearly every morning for sunrise. I was the poster child for salt water being the cure for everything. I walked for at least an hour, which produced a ton of sweat and two really tone and tan legs. I embraced the sea, its cadence and everything it had to offer—something new every day. And there were many mornings the tears just flowed. I was going through a rough transition in life, and those walks were my formula for coping and healing— like daily detoxes, soothing to the soul and freeing to the mind.

Fun, fun, and more fun is another move in my summer soul-stice playbook. My fun probably looks different than yours; that’s why it’s important to make a list of things YOU want to experience this summer—as in the next 90 days—without delay. Be sure to include a menagerie of things to do both big and small. Make it all “a thing”—extra special and memorable. For instance, if you want to eat tacos and drink margaritas every Tuesday, make a plan and make it happen. But kick it up a notch. Taco Tuesday could involve going to a different Mexican restaurant each week. Or it may include inviting a different group of friends over each Tuesday for tacos and a specialty margarita. I have found overtime, I enjoy inviting only the number of people who can fit around my dining table. This way, the conversation is all-inclusive and connective. I just love to listen to people’s stories and laugh or solve the world’s problems among friends, and this is the perfect setting for it. Are you ready to start your “must-do this summer” list?

Your list might include things further from home. I would love to swim with the dolphins down in Florida. I’ve done it once, years ago, and it’s magical. I also had a wonderful opportunity recently to learn about many tourist attractions and eclectic small towns throughout Georgia. For instance, there’s a hotel in Georgia where your room window overlooks giraffes. I have to do this. (I can’t wait to tell you more about everything going on in Georgia—who knew?) And don’t even get me started about everywhere else I want to go, which includes travel abroad, but I’m really stuck on going to visit Marjorie Post’s Hillwood Estate Museum & Garden in Washington, D.C., continuing the trip to Newport, Rhode Island, to tour the Gilded Age summer cottages. Then head toward Boston, Martha’s Vineyard and up to Maine, stopping unhurriedly at every whim along the way. (Sounds like every man’s dream vacation. LOL!)

Get fresh this summer, and by fresh, I’m referring to red ripe tomatoes, crisp sweet watermelon, silver queen corn, and juicy sweet peaches. These are my passion foods, and summer serves them up oh so well. I can hardly think of summer without fresh tomato juice dripping down my hands from the daily tomato sandwich with Dukes mayo, of course. We used to float watermelons under the walkway of the dock at the lake so they would be cold when we cut them. And my Aunt Ann grew the sweetest silver queen corn and cooked it better than any I’ve ever had. She would actually “milk” the cob to make the corn creamy. Be sure to fill your soul-stice with the bounty of summer going to your favorite farm or farmers’ market. It’s a great way to slow down, stop the daily hurry scurry dance, and feel free. It’s about going back to basics. Simple can be so good for the soul, and salt is absolutely necessary on corn and tomato sandwiches (pretty good on watermelon, too).

At the risk of sounding redundant, I repeat “get fresh this summer!” This time, though, I’m referring to a little summer lovin’. If you’re not kissing on your person, stop reading this, and commence to kissing. Don’t let time slip away not loving the one you’re with. Sultry summer nights are for rekindling. Get to that salty shore right before the sun goes down. Look at those stars shining down on you—get moonstruck. Where a cotton flowy dress. Feel the breeze. Hold hands. Laugh. Have fun, and remember who you are, what you want, and make sure to put it on your list to make it happen. And if you're currently single, head to the beach with your friends. There's just something magical about the beach at night.

These are just a few—amongst millions—of ideas to reconnect with yourself and allow your summer plans to fill your summer soul-stice. Turns out, my dear, you’ve always had that lost shaker of salt in you, you just had to remember for yourself.

Think Pink,
Elizabeth Millen