Just a few minutes ago, at 7:09 p.m., summer officially arrived!
Speaking for the legions of Americans who have been suffering under 90+ degree temps for a while now, it feels like it has been here for a long time already! As we mark the official start of summer, there are sweltering temperatures from the southwest to the northeast.
Almost makes you want to go find a pool somewhere and go for a refreshing swim.
I don’t know about you, but being southern, it has always felt like the seasons don’t really match our calendars. For example, the ‘unofficial’ start of summer generally happens on Memorial Day weekend. That seems about right.
School systems are generally wrapping up their year around that time. In Knox County, the actual last day of school was on May 24 this year. Even the school systems that go a bit longer – such as Oak Ridge – don’t go much past Memorial Day.
And then students everywhere rejoice and sing that time-tested summer anthem, “School’s Out for Summer!”
Fast forward to the start of the next school year – generally in early to mid August. The official end of summer will be three weeks away – in late September (when kids really should be back at school). And by then, more than half of the high school football season will be over.
It doesn’t match up.
In a similar fashion, doesn’t it feel like winter arrives about the time we’re cleaning out the last leftovers from Thanksgiving weekend? On the calendar, however, it says it’s December 21.
No where is the seasonal/calendar disconnect more profound, I think, than with the start of summer. It feels like we’ve had summer for weeks now and, yet, we didn’t officially receive the designation until this evening.
I remember from childhood days the wonderful feeling of summer – where you played all day and well into the night. Sandlot baseball games. Never-ending games of hide and seek or kick the can. When you got really bored – or a bit too sweaty – you could rig up a sprinkler in the yard, throw on a swimsuit and go running through your own make shift ‘mister’ to beat the heat.
Off in the distance, you’d see your buddy riding his bike and you might even hear the tat-a-tat-tat of a baseball card clipped to his tire to make an extra faux-motor sound. And, later, you’d hear the warped strains of the music coming from the happiest sight around – the ice cream man making his daily run.
There’s a lot to celebrate about summer – the season of staying up late and sleeping in; the season of air conditioning, fireflies and July 4th.
And now it’s time to celebrate the return of this happy season. Welcome back, summer!
JG
(Source: almanac.com)
Originally posted 6/20/2012
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