It feels like summer has shied away from these shores. The days of sitting in a park reading a book seem long gone, unless we have our jeans and jackets on.
Maybe the UK gives it a chilly welcome to start with because it’s all so strange to us.
But we still have a deep appreciation for how it makes us feel.
For a few short weeks or months (if we are lucky) we can bathe in its rays. Allow skin to absorb some natural vitamin D. Let clothing and mood be light.
Make pretend we have days without end to linger, lounge and let loose. Night comes late and light seeps slow away.
Then just as we begin to stop moaning about the heat and start to enjoy the mediterranean-style food, feasting and feelings, it lifts its skirts and runs away.
Such is the position now.
August has been dire. All dirty rain, drear and gloom.
But hey, we Brits are made of stern stuff. We know how to laugh in the gales and smile through the showers, don’t we?
Or sit and reflect on season’s passing, as we enter a new season to live, love, learn and laugh at the days to come.
Or compose poetry that imagines the summer that never was. The one that got away, though we never did.
So here, in a last-ditch attempt to enjoy the season, I offer no deep thoughts or reflection today.
No, this is just a simple summery scene from the senses in gratitude for a gift of grace that often fades as swift as our tans. Though maybe a final flurry will warm our hearts before Autumn sets in.
Just because… life is too short to mourn what is lost and not embrace what lies ahead. And that’s a lesson for me as I slide ever closer toward a new decade and a new season to enjoy.
‘High summer’
Feathery quill strokes
soft across azure sky,
entrail cotton-wisps
threaded through the blue,
barely discernible hint
of shade or shadow
High summer living
ease-taking, merrymaking,
cares left to subside as bubbles
sparkling in water or wine
Dreamily drifting with eyes
closed tight against the sun
shaded by flick of hand,
with glasses swung on and off
as clothes get cast aside
and limbs bathe free
Chlorinated heat-waves
lapping over face and form
Shrieks and splashes sounding
muffled, entrenched as we are
in pursuit of floating oblivion,
relaxation, chilled-out living,
sunshine, sea and sweet savour
of pleasure ours for the taking
©JoyLenton2013
And here’s a little chill-out music to help you feel summery for just a bit longer…
Poetry Joy 
It is getting cooler here, too, in the Midwest of the U.S. When I took some soul rest time this morning in nature, I was kind of saddened to see all the signs that summer is leaving, but I told myself how each season has a reason and just rejoiced in the moment. I love your thoughts that “life is too short to mourn what is lost and not embrace what lies ahead.” 🙂 Thank you, Joy.
Trudy, I love the positivity in your words, “but I told myself how each season has a reason and just rejoiced in the moment” and the wisdom they encapsulate. If only we could live that way each and every day! I’m glad you found something to take away here from a post that is less reflective than usual. Thank you, friend. 🙂 x
Hi Joy! I am so sorry that your summer is such a fleeting season in the UK. It’s been a moderate season there, but now that the kids are back in school, the heat is pouring on. Seems like a cruel joke really.
I love the image of the bubbles sparkling in water or wine. So fresh and fun! But then, it does evaporate, just like the seasons.
Enjoy the last few days of August. I hope you see the sun soon!
Ceil
Hi Ceil. It’s good to see you here. I’m glad you liked that line of the poem as it’s one of my favourites too. Hope you can enjoy the final burst of heat while it lasts! Rumour has it that we’re in for a delayed ‘Indian summer’ in the UK over the next week or so. Funny how we all feel so much brighter when we see the sun shine and how swiftly mood dips whenever it vanishes for long periods. We’re all so changeable in our emotions, aren’t we? I think my tendency to have SAD influences this perspective. Blessings to you and yours. 🙂 x