The Warmest Place on Earth

When we go to Michigan, we stay with The Summers. 
That is my amazing sister-in-law, her husband and their five children... 
This is my reflection on their home and lives.

The Summers’ home is a place of understanding, joy, respect, and love that knows no bounds! Each time I wake up in that house, I know that I will be spending the day surrounded by family, smiles, and love.


A typical day in the Summers’ household begins around 7am. As the natives arise and thunder down the stairs, the rest of the house stirs at the noise. From there, the day is off at a dizzying pace, with mouths to feed, hands and faces to wash, teeth and hair to brush, and all sorts of urgent things that a five-child home brings.  


At the warmest place on earth, you wake up to a fantastic breakfast (even the granola is homemade and amazing!) and a great cup of coffee. You spend the day busy in various activities: there is always a game to be played, a craft to be done, a hug to be shared, a conversation to be enjoyed, and more.

As I sit in the house listening to all the activity, I wonder how they manage. I wonder if it is the coffee that keeps them going, or the adrenaline, or something that I can’t understand. I wonder if I could rise to that challenge, or if I would break under the responsibility of it all.

Then, it happens, the child runs in, wakes me from my thoughts and I am off again. That is how I get my answer: they keep going through love. They focus on something, get it done, and move on, all the time, the real focus is love and service, God, faith and family.  




And so, as the microwave beeps echo through the empty kitchen with a forgotten cup of coffee waiting inside, I can’t help but think about how the Summers Family has something much richer than the coffee that helps get them through the day: they have a beautiful God-centered marriage, five healthy and wonderfully precious children, and a great house that serves as a fantastic home.

Though their coffee may stand forgotten, they are out living life and creating memories in the minds and hearts of their children that will last for generations to come. These treasures cannot be measured except by the smiles and tears, hopes, dreams, and laughter of the memories that are yet to be considered.

They have children who are kind and loving, generous and respectful, fun and happy! When one is falls down, another helps them up. If one is upset, another prays with them that God will help them to be happy. They argue like all siblings, but they have genuine love and concern for one another.  This is not something that happens accidentally, but through the guidance of parents who are teaching their kids what love truly is.

The Summers family is rich because they discovered the secret to the meaning of life; to live each day for God and to love without question. They love with reckless abandon, living every day with the goal of serving God more wholly than the day before. God’s glory is evident in this house and His will is considered the guide for all they do.  

I think that if these walls could talk, they would not complain about the continuous noise or the repeated microwave beeps, but would call out in thanks to God for the opportunity to witness all the love, blessings and glory this family has and shares, even on the most average of days.  

The warmest place on earth is alight with the glow of God’s Love, and the joy of the amazing family that lives there.