Zooming to the End of Summer

The other night as I was driving home at 7:30 p.m., I noticed that the light had changed.  It was a much closer to sunset light.  It made me realize, in a way that outdoor temperatures really don't, that we're getting very close to the end of summer. 

Here are some other close to the end of summer observations:

--Down here, our public school teachers are already back at school.  Students go back next week.  This seems early to me, but I know that some districts in other places have students return this week.

--It takes me back to my time at Lutherock, a Lutheran church camp we visited a few weeks ago.  My parents met us there for the whole week-end, and my uncle came up for Saturday afternoon.  We talked about summer being over, effectively.  We arrived on the last day of a regular camp week, August 2, which again, seems early to me.  But as I've written before, if you're returning to school mid-August, you're not going to camp in early August.

--I feel like I've lost this summer.

--But it wasn't really lost.  I just worked on goals that I didn't know I'd even have, way back in January when I was thinking about goals for 2013.

--My younger self used to scoff at the idea that moving was one of life's most stressful events.  My older self knows this to be true.

--My younger self could get her possessions moved into a new apartment in a day and be unpacked by the end of the week-end.  What did she know about the stress of moving?

--Yesterday morning, I saw a woman carrying a plastic container of watermelon chunks; I assume it was her lunch.  I thought, wait, I haven't eaten any watermelon yet this summer!

--But I've had other summer joys:  swimming in a variety of swimming pools, walking at the beach, sailing the Chesapeake Bay.

--And it's only the middle of August.  There's still time for summer joys.  I must remember to get some watermelon.

--And truth be told, I love the time of year from October to Christmas.  I don't get as sad about the end of summer because know great holidays are approaching.