By Tabitha Bozeman
This past week was hot. Wednesday afternoon, our weather apps told us that although it was 99 degrees outside, the “feels like” heat index was 109 degrees. This is definitely not my preferred weather. As I sat in front of the fan, pondering cool activities to plan for our family, I thought about some of the hottest summers I remember. One of the worst I can remember was the summer of 2012, when I was pregnant with my middle daughter. I wondered if I was recalling it correctly so I looked it up. Sure enough, 2012 was the 9th hottest summer in Alabama recorded history. I believe it. We had repeated highs of 106 degrees that summer, and the week we hit those highs, my car’s AC went out. It was miserable.
When I was a little girl, the summers seemed to last forever. Central heat and air was fairly standard by the 1970’s in new builds, but older homes were more likely to rely on fans and window units during the hot months. I remember sleeping on top of my bedspread, in the coolest pajamas I had, reading as the fan ruffled my book’s pages for hours into the nights when it was too hot to get to sleep. When I was older, I sometimes wondered if being born in the cooler Alaskan climate had anything to do with my dread of the summer months, because I truly hate the oppressive, heavy heat of summer in the south. But, even though I dread weeks like this past one, when just stepping outside is enough to drench you in sweat, there are still things I love about our summers here.
I love the effusive green of every plant in the summer, and the way the trees bend under the weight of the leaves. I love the yellow and white and purple dotted hills lining the interstate. I love the buzzing cicadas and the happy, swooping crows. When the sun sets on summer nights, I love seeing the lightning bugs come out and hearing the frogs croaking loudly. And, there isn’t much anything better than a loud, rushing, thunderous summer storm that comes out of nowhere and is gone just as quickly.
Summers are full of memories for most of us for many reasons. Our schedules tend to be disrupted while school is out. Many people take a vacation during the summer. Temperatures rise outside, and that affects moods and energy for many. The girls and I stopped on the way home the other day and picked some wildflowers on the side of our road. As we put them in a vase and admired the colors, I thought about those long, hot summers as a kid, and wondered what my children will remember most about the summers they are experiencing. Our youngest went to her first summer camp this past week–I know she will remember that forever. We’ve heard all about kayaking and swimming, about the woods and new friends, and I am so grateful for the local 4-H extension and the work Jenn Strawn does with our kids. My other girls have spent this first half of summer reading and bowling, planning ice cream outings and hanging out with friends. We had a family movie night the other day and tried out the newly remodeled theatres at Premiere Cinemas and loved them! Today, we stopped for Icees to cool off on our way home.
In some areas, the nights and days are so different in the summer that dangerous highs can cause heat stroke, while the nights can still dip below freezing. I remember this happening on a family camping trip in the desert in New Mexico when I was a little girl. In literature, summer is often used to represent a period of impending change, building a sense of tension between characters. Summer can also be a story’s signal to a reader to slow down, savor the moments and the interactions between characters. In literature and life, summer is the season when Nature seems to push everyone and everything to the very point of exhaustion just before breaking the heat wave with a shower, or a cooler night provides respite.
I will never love the suffocating heat of summer in Alabama because I truly love the cooler months best, but when I look and listen to the summer beauty around me, I can understand why Henry James said “Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” I try to remember this when I can’t sleep because of the heat, or am trying to figure out cool family activities to keep everyone busy. I understand why people love the summer, but my favorite part is knowing all this heat is leading to the cooler weather of fall and winter.
Tabitha Bozeman is an instructor at GSCC. Email at tabithabozeman@gmail.com.
