Heatwave's Promise
Yes, it’s oppressive, this heatwave from hell. Nobody’s arguing that. It weighs heavily. Blasts you when you step outside, most hours of the day. Burns, even.
We all hate it.
But some of us also love it. Myself included.
Why, you may ask? What in God’s name is there to love about searing midday temperatures?
In the moment?
Nothing.
It’s the promise that blistering heat holds. The prize at the bottom of the cereal bowl. The light at the end of the tunnel. The glorious gift you only get in summer after a particularly hot day.
The time when the sun slowly sinks, still leaving light, but bearing less heat. And as the degrees drop more and more, the cooling world falls into a magical, lyrical space.
That temperate lull that is the heavenly harbor of a lazy summer evening.
No longer uncomfortable is the air. It wafts with the gentlest of breezes. Soothes body and soul like a balm: soft as cotton balls and smelling sweet with the season’s fragrant flowers. The few rays of the sun that manage to seep through the trees stretch and stream across the palette of the park or yard in which you find yourself, catching little specks like fairies dancing in the air.
The scorching torture of the day is done and this susurrant, stress-melting reward envelopes us in its sweet relief and intoxicating glory of cozy comfort. It welcomes the laughter of company, cocktails or cool desserts; it’s equally glad to embrace you on your own in a quiet recess of mindful self-care.
It’s there for you to breathe it in, make it a part of you, and exhale all your worries away. And it’s there to remind you that difficult times, like the earlier heat, always come to an end and, in doing so, make way for easier, restorative moments of harmonious bliss, like this.
So, the next time you’re hit by the heat of the midday sun, remember its promise of magic to come.
The fairies and I will see you there.
Thank you for reminding us about the silver lining!
I'm still not a big fan of heatwaves, but you certainly make it sound appealing!