Prompt: What are three things that remind you of summer?
I absolutely love summer, but it is my least favorite season. Most of all I love that seasons change… and change back again. The wonderful rhythms of life. There are three simple things I look forward to most about the sweet summer months that remind me of summers present and past.
Evening Walks
I know it’s officially summer the first time I think, “wow, it’s 8:00 and it’s still light out!” Peak summer is when it’s still light after 9:00. The days seem long in the loveliest way and walks late into the evening while it’s light enough to enjoy the neighbors’ gardens are the sweetest.
The Fourth of July
Maybe it’s because the fourth of July is my birthday eve. Maybe it’s the third-generation tradition of hand cranking homemade ice cream. Maybe it’s the warm evening breeze and everyone coming out of their houses to sit on sidewalk curbs to watch little firecrackers. Maybe it’s our tradition of gathering with the whole family for a bbq and attending a neighborhood fireworks show. But I LOVE the fourth of July. And it is the epitome of summer for me.
Labor Day Weekend
Labor Day Weekend has shifted for me over the years. It used to mean the end of summer and school starting (which was very exciting). In college it was a retreat away with friends to the Lake of the Ozarks to dream and pray about the year to come. More recently it has been a trip to the beach with family. Even more recently those family trips include delightful little people (my niece and nephew) who bring a (albeit quite loud and messy) joy to everything. Labor Day always marks the end of summer, but in a way that is one last taste of everything wonderful about the season.
Then fall starts (on September 1st in my opinion) and all is right in the world.
