An Ode to Summer
The sweat, the heat and the abundance it brings while offering a chance to slow down....
Parenthood has been abnormally trying this week… there’s been doctors appointments planned and unplanned, homeowner stuff that’s left me unsettled, a myriad of other things going on and not much time left in the day to enjoy being with Danial.
On the bright side we’ve managed to squirrel away a lot of time outside this week even as the heat of summer settles in.
The summer heat, that so many commiserate about, I find myself just as in love with as ever (granted we are sticking in the upper 80’s and 90’s and not breaking records). I know I am among the minority, at least amongst those I encounter… but it’s something I genuinely love.
When I was pregnant with Juner, Danial and I walked every evening. Eight-nine months pregnant in the midsummer heat felt like absolute bliss to me and perhaps lead my doctor to thinking I was a touch out of my mind ☺️ but nothing felt better than than walking beneath the moon as the clouds turned from bubblegum pink to soft purple.
Sweating beneath cotton candy skies knowing when we returned home Juner would begin wiggling around as soon as I sat down for the night. She’d push with all her might against my dogs head as he pressed into my belly. I suspect he was anxious to meet our June Bug…
It’s true, I adore summer. The beads of sweat that form on the small of my back, the way the intense heat feels on my bare skin… it’s relaxing. It reminds me that Summer isn’t necessarily meant for the hustle and bustle that can easily consume it. Hustle and bustle is best left to the bees I suspect and if you’ve ever taken the time to watch them I imagine you’d agree.
I’ve been feeling some frustration that progress on my work has slowed but I’m beginning to accept the slower pace of it.
For now anyway.
It’s not time for big leaps with my work. Little bits of prep here and there will do… Family Lego competitions fill the need for creativity that courses through me… as do a multitude of other things with my kids.
and the work will still be there waiting when the time comes to jump back in more fully…
Leaning into family time. Making more time for friends and forts… letting the lull settle in before the rush of the new school year sweeps us into Autumn. Autumn, time when I can be fully engaged in the process once again. It will all come soon enough.
For the time being though, just enjoying what is right now is enough.
It’s a reminder I needed, maybe you did to…
Slow down for pool days or evenings at a splash pad. Take walks as night falls. Embrace the sweat that will inevitably come calling, admire the bees in their work, leave shallow rock filled places for them to take a drink when they need it. Enjoy the sweet blooms of Summer before they give way to changing seasons. Notice the way the wind moves through it all. Stare up at the clouds and watch them change shape. Listen to all the sounds that surround you. Jump onto the swings and feel the coolness it brings. It doesn’t take much time to discover the wonder that Summer brings. Soak her in before she’s gone until next year.
-Bec