Summer, I’m just not that in to you

Are you ready for the emotional transition into Summer?

I have always loved the transition from season to season.

However some I love more than others.

I love Winter into Spring and Summer into Autumn.

I like (not love so much) Autumn in to Winter and Spring into Summer.

What’s not to like about Summer?

Shakespeare wrote the beautiful Sonnet No 18 about it

      Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate.

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And summer’s lease hath all too short a date.

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And often is his gold complexion dimmed;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance, or nature’s changing course, untrimmed;

But thy eternal summer shall not fade,

Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st,

Nor shall death brag thou wand’rest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to Time thou grow’st.

So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,

 So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

Well for some of us, its just not that brilliant!

It could be an age thing?

Summer when I was still at school was FANTASTIC, full of freedom and friends.

  Once I started working, Summer became the ever present reminder that adulthood and adult responsibilities such as work and rent need to take priority over the beaches and bars

Once parenthood came along, Summer became the health hazard that meant SPF50, shade and rashes

Once the kids were older and school going, Summer became a child-minding nightmare that meant,juggling Summer camps and travelling with kids (sometimes an endurance test that should be recognised as an Olympic sport)

Once the kids went to college, Summer became a ‘you need to get a job’ mantra that meant hours of  interview and CV coaching until the magic words were said “Mam, I got a job”

Summer is now a time when I can claim back my freedom.  When I can choose a holiday that doesn’t have to be child friendly.  I can go to places of culture and take it all in at my own pace.  I can go on a spontaneous day trip with as much adventure or relaxation that I like.

Why do some of us not relish Summer then?

Well, it is said that Summer is the Extrovert Season

A season that seems to be full of people who want to be outdoors, being seen and heard.  It’s definitely a noisy season, lots of late evening garden activities and raised voices of children and adults.  Just what we need to be doing to shake off the winter blues.

If like me, Summer is too much of an extrovert for you, then you need to prepare yourself because one thing for sure, it shows up at the same time every year.

We need to set our selves up to sink in to Summer by creating a way to manage the emotional transition, embrace it and enjoy it some more.

Look for the things the Summer brings that you love

Here are some of mine…

• I love the fresh fruit and salads – less cooking and cleaning
• I love the late evening and early morning brightness
• I love the birds singing
• I love seeing the garden change
• I love getting out for walks without the need for gale force weather wear
• I love the colour of the sea
• I love the Summer songs on every radio station that drive us mad but we know all the words to.

While for some of us, Summer is not our favourite season, there are so many reasons to love it.

What’s yours?

Images courtesy of PaiTai, Sura Nualpradid, Salvatore Viona and Jiggoja at FreeDigitalPhotos.net