Summer is nearly upon us. The trade-off to our long, dark Northeast winters has burst forth in a full and flowering spring, a season colored with shades of green found nowhere else and never in such splendid variety.

We have rain, yes, but also skies of electric blue, songbirds too numerous to name and rock-ringed lakes reflecting hills and beaches that now echo with the laughter of children soon done with school and homework. The light is long and our energy renewed.

To what purpose shall we use it?

Neo-pagan writers Cait Johnson and Maura Shaw say of the summer months and the ancient religious celebrations that surround them, “as we feel the sun’s power to burn as well as to bless we can feel our own gifts, our own special abilities as they ripen and swell, and know that we, too, have the power to make a difference for growth or for destruction in the world. The great festivals of summer teach us how to use our power wisely for the good of all.”

In our modern culture we have a tendency to trivialize or demonize the worship that our most ancient ancestors participated in as they recognized and rejoiced with the turning seasons of the earth. But, there is nothing trivial about the power of summer and its life-giving abundance. There is a deep truth in neo-pagan worship and how it honors summer: a lesson about abundant love.

Abundant love is not the stuff of sticky-sweet Hallmark cards at Valentine’s Day. Abundant love is not the procreative, regenerative love of spring. Abundant love is the power we have to hold or hurt one another, to affect every person we meet.

As in ancient days, we burst forth into wider community in the summertime, no longer bound by the cold, ice and snow. Now we walk more often, seeing more faces on the sidewalk, meeting new people on the beach or at an outdoor coffee spot. We go to new places, do new things, all the while interacting with a wider circle of people than those we knew in the winter months. There may be a few new annoyances as well – there’s always the tourist who is going the wrong way down that one-way street or tries to view the ocean from the fast lane instead of pulling over and taking a proper look, one that doesn’t impede your travel.

How long ago were you that tourist?

All this renewed energy, all this power of summer and the wider community of which we become a part, what do we do with it? All these new faces on the street, on the beach, at camp, are we smiling into them, saying hello? Do we consciously welcome new friends and neighbors, and guests from out of town, not only in our neighborhoods but in our businesses, in our churches and synagogues, and even in line at the grocery store?

Do we give people a few extra moments to get their bearings at the traffic light or the tollbooth? Do we see ourselves in one another; recognize one another as fellow human being, brother or sister, filled with light and power, a blessing, each of us, in our own right? Summer reminds us that we have the power to do so. We hold the power, the free will, the responsibility, to make life on earth heaven, or hell.

Do we use this power to practice abundant love, showering ourselves and one another in recognition, affirmation and patience? Or are we just busy? Are we just logging miles? There’s work, school, all the kids’ activities, the grocery shopping, the extra brunch to plan for, the party to put on and then church to go to, and then meetings for church.

Summer means more: more light, yes, more flowers, more warm and sunny days, and more miles logged, more activities to get to, more gatherings to plan. We might forget why we’re really here, forget to give ourselves a break from planning, purchasing and performing and, eventually, we stop giving anyone else a break as well.

In this gorgeous season, take stock. In the summer months be guided by the ability to burn or to bless, and decide how your energy and resources are best spent.

Like the sun, like the season, we human beings have enormous power in our day-to-day lives to practice love, or to indulge in hate or indifference. May we practice abundant love. May we bring our gifts to the table, gifts that do not require busyness or buying but that recognize and affirm others even as they feed our own souls. Be a blessing, and have many blessings returned.

The Rev. Jennifer Emrich is a Unitarian Universalist supply preacher. She may be reached through bdnreligion@bangordailynews.net. Voices is a weekly commentary by Maine people who explore issues affecting spirituality and religious life.