A wild wind blows the darkness into the dining room. A car revs on the arterial outside our open windows. The maples toss their thin, leafy arms up in despair. Our short summer takes a deep, refreshing breath, cooling our children finally dreaming comfortably in their four little beds, cooling the sucking, sleepless heat of these rare 100-degree days in an 100 year-old house.
I love it. The heat. The plump, flawless skin, uncracked, unchapped, smelling of slathered sunblock and sweat. The blinding light. Vinyl seats that burn the backs of our legs. “My back is sweating,” Quinn wails from the farthest row of the van. I nod without sympathy because isn’t it wonderful?
This is summer and I want more. I want fireflies. I want summer nights so hot that you go to bed on a towel, soaking wet. I want unbidden memories of the smell of Ohio in July, of painting sidewalks with Grandpa’s paintbrushes and a pail of water, my masterpieces drying to nothing before they could be finished.
Saige and Garrett and Quinn painted the fence this afternoon. The dog and I watched, tongues hanging. Ice melted in my glass. Bubbles floated in his bowl. The ice cream truck drove by tinkling brazenly and Nate clapped his hands from the dirt, his Lightening McQueen car forgotten. “The dancing truck!”
“No, Nate,” Saige corrected him over her shoulder, art suspended behind her. “It’s the ice cream truck. Mommy’s kidding.”
“Oh,” he said, almost sad. At my duplicity or at the loss of such a thing as a dancing truck, I don’t know.
Sometimes, what you believe to be true is not and you are left holding nothing but a painting painted in water in the heat. Until someone hands you ice cream.
Above their heads, the pines started to sway. The sun still shone. Nothing altered except a strange lessening of pressure, the outtake of damp breath in our faces. Tonight’s storm coming, pushing change and sleep in front of it.
(second try…blogger won’t post my comment/???)
Anyhow, I was saying that I am sure there is a deeper meaning that I should “get” from this post, but it is almost 1:30am and I’m tired. I’m processing pickles and I just want to go to bed so…
I’m just going to say I like it stinkin’ hot sweaty as well and wish I had that every single day… not this freezing cold that is causing my furnace to run in July.
Gayle recently posted..Cool Enough For The Furnace :(
Now can you delete my first one so I don’t look like an idiot?? LOL
Gayle recently posted..Cool Enough For The Furnace :(
Done. I can not believe you have the furnace on. I just shuddered for you.
Anymommy recently posted..Evaporation
I found this wonderful on a few levels !
First of all, memories. I grew up in North Carolina, I remember hot sweaty summers and sticky summer nights, fireflies and heat lightening.
And I am at the moment, in South America, where it is the dead of winter and I am huddled with the heat and wishing I could run outside at night and catch a firefly.
love you
Candice@NotesFromABroad recently posted..Monday .. Look at This Blog !
I’m glad you’re getting to enjoy some heat; here we feel the same about snow (we had none this past winter). You and yours are always welcome to come visit :) !
The dancing truck. That is AWEsome. I only wish I’d thought of that for the wee ones. Oh well.
But you love the heat? Ugh, I can’t stand it (mostly because I don’t sweat so I am unbearably hot with no way to cool down), but at least there’s a ton of it, and I’m actually glad that someone does like and appreciate it. Otherwise, breaking yet another heat record today seems like such a waste!
Michelle recently posted..Tapenade And Goat Cheese Crostini – Tasty Tuesday!
I’m not good with the heat and I’m wilting over here in Wisconsin, but I loved reading this. It’s the kind of appreciation of summer I need to keep in mind since before we know it, it will all be a distant memory and the wind will turn cold again.
Korinthia Klein recently posted..The Marks of Practice
We’ve had more 100+ degree days than I can count this year. Last year we never hit 100. Shrug.
I know you love the heat so I hope you get more of it.
Laughing at the dancing truck. Ha. Love you.
Issa recently posted..I’ve learned that you don’t tell Clomid, no.
Well, maybe you should just spend the summer back here. 100 degrees today, and I think I would die without air conditioning. Or, at the least, my kids would starve.
But maybe, if the winter had been cold at all, I would be appreciating this weather more!
suburbancorrespondent recently posted..Speed Racer
okay, how did you convince them to paint the fence with water while you sit and watch with a margarita at hand (I presume that is what is the liquid in the ice-filled glass)?! I need to know this!! :D
oh. the water painting.
and the dancing truck.
and your story telling.
heat has been sweltering us too. and i hate it but totally love it at the same time.
probably because i love it more than icy roads.
but. hot.
whew.
jen recently posted..hover.
As always, I love your voice. Your words are always so beautiful. Also, water painting? Genius!
Mel recently posted..Why Game Night is Like a Cage Match
Beautiful.
And my son called it the music truck for almost 4 years before grandma broke down and spilled the beans. :)
Stunning.
Steph
Stephanie Precourt recently posted..What Do The Kids Think About Moving?
Your writing is just as magical as those summer nights. I always love it here, you never fail to take me to another place.
Wow, you have a much better attitude than I do… I’m not enjoying the heat at all and am getting grumpy about the relentless 100 degree weather. But we have water. And sidewalk. And fence. So tomorrow we will be water painting. Thank you!
YellowLadybird recently posted..Nesting blocks (Toy)
You always make me want to live where you live.
p.s. will I get to see/hug you in a couple of weeks in NYC? Hope so!!
Elaine recently posted..Grand Memories
You always make me want to live where you live.
p.s. Hope I get to see/hug you in a couple of weeks in NYC!
Elaine recently posted..Grand Memories
So beautiful. Magical. (But sadly I still hate the heat lolol) xoxo
tracy@sellabitmum recently posted..Evening News
So beautiful, so poetic – this is just rich.
However. Are you crazy???? You love hot sweaty sticky heat? ;-)
No, give me cold sweaters-on-the-beach any day!
(I’m trying pathetically to catch up on my friend’s blogs from my time away – any verdict on BlogHer? A no? A yes?)
Hugs
Lady Jennie recently posted..I Wish
I Love this. So much. I wish I wasn’t so behind on life that I’m just reading it now, because its amazing. It’s 100% how I feel about summer.
This was my favorite, “The maples toss their thin, leafy arms up in despair.” I love the visual.
I hold on tight to summer, too.
It is truly the stuff that memories are made of – burning seats and all.
Stunning, as always, you.
xo
Galit Breen recently posted..The Habit of Friendship
Good god. The lyricism you brought to bear here — all that thick and tangible heat, the thin and colored water swirling and evaporating beneath a relentless sun, the subtle shifts of air and pressure…
Wonderful.
twobusy recently posted..Blue and Wonder