The Summer Emergency Brake
Resisting the breakneck descent into fall.
If summer is a roller coaster, June is the leisurely climb up the tracks . . . click, clack, click . . . every click of the car on the tracks is another day on the calendar. As the car climbs upward, there’s time to look around and enjoy the panoramic view beneath you. The car continues to click . . . up, up, up . . . until it reaches its vista — the Fourth of July. For one breathtaking moment, time freezes and the car hovers in mid-air. You bake in the summer sun at the hometown parade, you grill burgers, you light sparklers.
And then . . .
The car drops with terrifying speed, hurling you into all the twists, turns, and loop-de-loops of the remaining weeks of July. Summer camp! Vacation! Pool parties! You fly over the remaining track at a dizzying speed, and before you can blink, you’re coasting back into the station, where “exit” is spelled A-U-G-U-S-T.
Now, if you’re a thrill-seeker, then maybe the highlight of your summer was that stomach-in-your-throat, hands-in-the-air, open-mouth-scream drop from July 4th. Maybe you’re presently delighting in every loop-de-loop, and you can ignore the station looming ahead.
Or maybe you’re like me — a textbook non-thrill seeker. I reach the heights of the roller coaster of summer . . . and what do I do?
I throw on the emergency brake.
Picture me with arms crossed in stubborn defiance. Picture me as a two-year-old whose favorite word is “no.”
I refuse to take July at this speed. I won’t do it. Summer is not over, even if that station is within eyesight.
Some of you have resigned yourself to the speed, fully embraced it. Some of you have already gotten off the ride and passed back through the station. I see you sharpening your bouquets of pencils. I see you stockpiling pumpkins for the moment it’s socially acceptable to put them on your front porch (you know who you are).
Will someone please hit the brakes?!
I’m doing my best to hit my personal emergency brake in July. I’m resisting the forces that would catapult me into August and all that the fall holds. I’m slowing down. I’m savoring this moment, right now.
It may feel a little late in the game, but I’ve curated a grown-up, mid-summer bucket list. Every item on this list is a tap of the brakes. Each one is a reminder: Slow your roll. It’s still summer. Enjoy the season. Don’t wish it away. Don’t rush it away.
My Grown-Up, Mid-Summer Bucket List
🍒 Make a cherry crisp.
🎬 Chill out in a movie theater with my niece and nephew.
🚙 Take a spontaneous day trip.
🍽️ Plan lunch with an old friend.
🏃🏽♀️ Go for a walk at sundown.
📵 Turn off my phone for a solid day.
☕️ Invite a neighbor for coffee.
🥑 Eat an avocado at breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
🀄️ Learn a new game with family or friends.
🥗 Try a new salad recipe.
📚 Read a summery novel.
Wherever you are on the summer roller coaster, let me challenge you to slow down (even if that means closing your eyes in the middle of a loop-de-loop to enjoy the moment). Fall will be here soon enough, perhaps too soon. But we’ve been given this moment, right now. Receive it. Enjoy it.
Simple Pleasures
The simple things I’m enjoying right here, right now.
Reading: Land by Maggie O’Farrell. While it feels like more of a fall or winter read, this book is captivating. I’ve switched between the hardcover and audio several times because I wasn’t willing to leave the world of the story to . . . oh, you know . . . go about my daily life.
Listening To: Happy, Summery Instrumental playlist. I searched Spotify for summer instrumentals during a writing session, and this playlist hit the mark. Bright, cheery, happy summer tunes. (Ted Lasso: Series Soundtracks also ring the same bells.)
Snacking On: Albanese Peach Rings and Taku Ginger Cookies. I know ginger sounds like a fall flavor, but trust me on this — it transcends season. These cookies are tied in my memory to the Taku Glacier Lodge in Juneau on the 4th of July, so the recipe will forever be summer-appropriate.
What about you?
I’d love to hear — what’s on your mid-summer bucket list? What are you enjoying in this moment, right now? And where are you on the summer roller coaster? Drop a comment or chime in on the poll below!
You've described perfectly what I'm feeling!