The Hancock-Henderson Quill, Inc.
There’s a special kind of heat that settles over the Midwest in August; thick, slow, and that kind of heat that takes your breath away the moment you step outside.
It wraps around us like a wool blanket, even in the shade. The days feel never-ending, the air heavy with the scent of cut grass, sunscreen, and something familiar, maybe a memory, or maybe just the echo of summers gone by.
I can still picture those long August afternoons when the only real relief came from jumping into the local pool.
The sound of “MOM WATCH THIS” over and over as we do the same tricks off the diving board.
Begging for 5 more minutes when it was time to go, even though our hands were so pruned and our noses cherry red from the sun.
And yet, no matter how many ice cold waters we down or fans we crank up, there’s always someone saying it: “Won’t be long before we’re wishing it was warm again.”
It’s true, too. Come January, we’ll long for the feel of sun on our shoulders and lazy evenings when the sun doesn’t set till after 8.
That’s the strange and beautiful rhythm of living here, we miss what we have once it’s gone.
In these hot summer days we need to try to enjoy the season we’re in, even when it’s a little uncomfortable.
As Ecclesiastes says, “To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”
Even the heat has a purpose, even though sometimes that’s hard to remember when the sweat is dripping into your eye!
So as we wipe the sweat from our brows and fan ourselves on front porches, let’s remember: these hot days are fleeting.
The pool will close, the leaves will change, and soon enough, we’ll be trading in our sandals for scarves grumbling about scooping away all that snow!
But for now, it’s August in the Midwest!