love always, kristin

an ode to summer

september 23. 2:39pm.

This is usually the time of year that I look forward to most:

when you start asking for your latte hot rather than iced, when you have to grab a jacket on your way out the door, counting down the days until ski season starts.

This year feels different than years past. This summer was the best one I’ve ever had and for the first time in my life, I’m not ready to let it go.

For my entire life, I have always Hated summer – with a capital “H”.

I’ve never liked the heat that everyone else seemed to look forward to, especially where I grew up (where 96° is considered a cool day). Gross.

I also didn’t like the underlying pressure that summer was supposed to be fun. The idea of having to do something fantastic with my life in only a short couple of months seemed ridiculous and unattainable.

Growing up, everyone looks forward to summer break, but for me that “break” meant taking a break from seeing my friends every day and my after school activities just as much as it meant taking a break from homework. And then the older you get, the break from school only means that you have more time for a summer job.

Every year, I have counted down the days until August ended, ready to get back to a routine and enjoy colder weather again.

This year I learned to love the season that I hated the most, so much that I wish it didn’t have to end.

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I spent my summer in Tahoe with a whole new set of people. Most of the friends that I had when I used to live there have since graduated and/or moved elsewhere. When I moved back there this last May, there were some familiar faces, but my circle of friends has grown and is now full of new people.

I met a few of them through my job at the golf course. I worked there in the past, but this year we had an almost entirely different staff from the last time I worked there. There is something to be said about the connections you make with coworkers – spending eight or more hours at a time with the same people for days in a row gives you plenty of time to get to know someone.

I also met a lot of people by going line dancing (at least) once a week. I grew up in a country town and had always wanted to try it, but never had the opportunity. I started going to the same bar once a week for line dancing lessons and I would see a lot of the same faces every week. By the end of the summer, we had all become pretty close.

Whenever I wasn’t at work or going dancing, I filled my time with every opportunity I got my hands on: I caddied for a celebrity golf tournament, went to a country music festival, spent many days at the beach and played a whole lot of golf.

All of these factors gave me every reason to hold onto summer for as long as possible, but most importantly, I took better care of myself this summer than I ever have before. That may seem small, but it made all the difference in the world. When I get caught up with school or I become busy for other reasons, I often forget to slow down and take a break every once in a while.

This summer was entirely different – I learned how to catch my breath.

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In late July, during my last week in Tahoe, I took a short hike to sit and write for a while after barely writing anything all summer:

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I wrote that back in July. I have been back in Colorado for about two months now.

The aspens are turning yellow and summer ended as it always does: sooner than you think it will.

Today is the fall equinox.

In my reflection of this last season, I’m realizing that the things I was afraid to leave behind haven’t really left me. I carry those people and those experiences with me. I am who I am because of the things I’ve lived through and the interactions I’ve had.

Someone once said that all things must come to an end, and as true as that is, it doesn’t mean that we don’t carry those things with us into a new season of life.

There is no time of year, no season or temperature window, that should dictate how much you enjoy your life.

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equinox: noun

1 : either of the two points on the celestial sphere where the celestial equator intersects the ecliptic

2 : either of the two times each year (about March 20 and September 22) when the sun crosses the equator and day and night are everywhere on earth of approximately equal length

or, my own personal take –

3 : the day where you start wearing a jacket and ordering hot coffee, not the day where you stop enjoying your life for eight months

This year, I’m taking a new mindset and a new perspective with me into autumn. I encourage you to do the same.

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Love always,

Kristin