Summertime!

This week I felt like I was having a short interlude that finally felt like summer. There are many things I like about summer, but I hadn't gotten to experience all of the essential (to me) parts until this week. I like the sunshine and the heat. It is so cold and gloomy for much of the winter in Chicago that sunny, hot days are a treasure. Until recently our summer in Chicago has been rain, rain, rain.

I also like having nothing to do! I like traveling, too, and accomplishing things, but having some days where I can read for hours, or do anything else I please are an important part of refueling for the school year.

On the other hand, I like being able to check some things off my to-do list. All those things that I never seem to have time or energy for during the school year - at least some of them can get done in the summer.

Because I had a chance to play in the orchestra for an opera this month, and I had to put in a lot of time on both rehearsals and practicing the difficult part at home, I hadn't yet experienced that summer restfulness. I loved doing the opera, but it certainly kept me occupied. We leave in a few days for a vacation in California, so this feels like a few days bookended by busyness. I read three books! I reorganized my spice cabinet! I continued going through my books and culling. I walked, I did yoga.

Remember when you were a kid and summer seemed to stretch on forever? Endless days playing outside, riding bikes, going swimming... Nowadays I see the end of summer looming as early as June. It's good to have some of those forever days.