Another Summer's End

Isn't it funny how just as the first day of school approaches, the air suddenly changes? It's like someone flips a switch — nights become refreshingly cool, the humidity is cleared by crisp, dry air and the afternoon sun hits your face a little differently. Just like that, the message is clear: fall is right around the corner and with it brings the excitement of a new school year. I love the sudden feeling of urgency to purchase pencils and markers and new sneakers, plant mums, bake an apple pie,  remember how to cook a dinner that doesn't involve the outdoor grill. But I also dread that tinge of sadness that late August brings, knowing that another gloriously indulgent summer is ending. All those lazy days sitting by the lake — basking in the summer sun, watching the kids swim back and forth to the floating dock and wondering how they don't tire of the water — will soon just be a memory, merged into the mental scrapbook of all the others summers gone by. But onward we must march into another school year, another soccer season, another Thanksgiving and Christmas, another long and dreary spring — all the while, dreaming of next summer.