Oh Summer…how I love you. I will miss the green in the trees, and the cool wind that blows through the warm days. The buzzing of the cicadas, and the smell of peaches in the house…you will leave us soon. But most of all, the ease of life will be gone. In this by-default cold country of Canada, most of the year is spent in jackets and boots. Getting ready takes time. The outside needs to be braced for. Walking is not always ideal for the skin.
Yes, I will miss all of this. And the lazy days. I am taking things super slow and easy in some ways. But also going at a frantic speed in others. The paces have been reversed from the rest of the year. And I am enjoying this contrast.
So art making has slowed way down. I am noticing and drawing more. But not squeezing out paints from the tube as much. I am napping most afternoons. I am doing minimum number of tasks and errands each day.
But my mornings are full and early with making it to my Mysore yoga class before 6:30 am. And then hitting the gym later on in the morning. I am loving this pace followed by my nap, and a very tired sleep each night. I know it’s a lot to put my body through especially in the heat, but my body is rising to the occasion, and surprising me in ways it’s slowly getting strong and open to the various poses of the Ashtanga series. Having a teacher to guide me with her open and caring voice, her precise instructions, and her spot on adjustments, is definitely a game changer. I don’t know how I was doing yoga all my adult life before this- not that great, obviously. But I am thankful to my younger self for sticking to it for twenty years in big and small ways consistently. Without that path of consistency, I would not have reached here, either in my mind or in my body, to embrace Ashtanga, and Mysore style practice. I am thankful for this journey.
For the last three weeks of summer/August, I have some plans, but I also have empty days to enjoy this slow time of the year. My son will be home in 10 days…which will make us feel complete as a family again…not that we are not enjoying this adult-only time. But he is definitely the light and life of this home and family we have created. Oh and we have a road trip coming up to round out our summer with some traveling.
A few things I want to accomplish this month are get a haircut that changes things up, make some granola, preserve all the stone fruits we picked up from Niagara, make sourdough bialys for my son to welcome him home (as per his request), and watch Shakespeare in the Park with a family picnic (our last try in July got stormed out, so we will make a second attempt!)- It’s “Romeo and Juliet” this year.
Yup, that is the feeling I have right now- of being slow in life, being consistent in Yoga, making a few interesting things in the kitchen, and just cherish these last few warm days, without complaining about the heat!
What do you have in store for the rest of August?