I hear people say that they don't like summer. Or more specifically, the hot weather. That's too bad, because it's here until at least the end of September. That's four months from now. And that's a long time to be unhappy, or miserable, or suffering.
There are those triple digit days, true, and they are hard. But, for the most part, I do like the warmer time of year. I don't have a swimming pool, but there's one at my gym. And there's always the sprinklers to run through....
Mostly, I like the longer days. When I get up in the morning, it is not dark. And more importantly, when I get home from work, it is not dark. In fact, it feels like there is still some day left, and I like that.
To me, the secret to summer is to look at the positives, and there are many. Longer days. Sunny skies. Travel. Swimming, fishing, boating. Rafting down the river. Barbeques with friends and family. Lazy, hot afternoons spent reading in a comfy chair, with a portable fan blasting away, nearby.
The simple fact is, wishing that it wasn't summer won't make it go away. Any more than wishing it wasn't winter made last winter go away. Acceptance. That's part of it, too. Accept the fact that it's going to be hot and deal with it.
I always enjoy the summer evenings around Podunk. For some reason, sound carries quite well in my neighborhood, so I hear lots of interesting things. Starting later this week, there will be high school and junior college graduations at the stadium just north of me. I will hear “Pomp and Circumstance” many times this week.
I like the time of the evening just as twilight happens. If it's very warm still, the crickets begin their chirping. The neighborhood settles in for another evening and things are still. On moonless nights, the stars look as if I can reach up and touch them. I wish I could.
I like to water my garden at nearly twilight, then sit in a lawn chair and enjoy the evening. It reminds me of childhood summer evenings spent listening to my daddy read the classics to us. Then, we would all lay on a blanket on the grass and learn about the constellations, and how sailors used them to navigate.
I remember lying there and wondering how my daddy knew so much....
Yes, it gets frightfully hot in the afternoons, here in Podunk. But, we learn to work around it. I do my housework in the early mornings, before I go to work. And I go in to work early and start seeing patients early. By early to mid-afternoon, I am through seeing patients, and I am at home doing my paperwork.
Now that I have a barbeque again, meals are a breeze to fix. And what doesn't taste special after being barbequed? Votive candles inside glass hurricanes, a red-checked tablecloth on the patio table, the patio ceiling fans gently moving the air, and the smell of gardenias wafting up from the back garden....
What more heavenly way to spend one-third of a year of my life?
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