The weather finally broke, the humidity dissipated and the outdoors no longer hurts my skin or lungs. It has felt a little like fall for the last couple of days and this break has been a tremendous relief.
We hiked yesterday for the first time since June. Plus, we picked up food truck food and had a picnic at the lake. Last night was nice and cool so we went on the porch and enjoyed the sounds of evening in the country.
It was awfully nice and I wish it would last. Unfortunately, the heat will return soon and we’ll be sweating again and I’ll be complaining about it again.
All the same, it’s a lovely reminder of what is to come as summer will eventually shift into fall and I couldn’t be more excited.
I wouldn’t hate summer so much if it always felt like fall!
I took a few days off this week and headed north for a little adventure in Cleveland. We chose this destination because a favorite author was speaking and I was dying to go hear her.
We had a nice time but I am a self proclaimed country mouse and the concrete, noise and pollution of that city are hard to tolerate. There are benefits like bookstores, restaurants, museums and other cultural features that are hard to come by where I live. I love parking the car and wandering around a city’s downtown even though I didn’t get to do that this time.
But the sirens, construction sounds, and challenging traffic situations make it hard for me to relax. Plus, it feels like there is no good way to get anywhere and it’s all incredibly spread out so that’s an annoyance.
Once we left Cleveland and were headed south on less populated interstate followed by state routes through the countryside, and then backroads home, I noticed I was breathing better with each passing mile.
As dusk turned to dark, the thick forests which line our rural roads began to crowd in, as though reaching toward the car in a warm embrace.
We rolled down the windows and breathed in the cool air. It was about 74 degrees and the humidity had broken while we were away.
Not only did it feel soft and pleasant, it smelled clean. We realized we hadn’t breathed clean air in days.
And our country air didn’t disappoint.
It smelled of pine, of earth, and sometimes of campfire smoke.
It was eerie in places where rain had preceded us and left behind a light misty fog that clung to the pine trees..
Two small deer grazed by the road as fireflies danced around them. We didn’t see fireflies in the city. We also didn’t hear locusts, tree frogs or bull frogs where we were.
We did spend some time at Lakeview Cemetery and were delighted at all the life that is found among the deceased including swans, ducks, fish, turtles and all manner of birds.
As country people we are told that our life is backward. People might call it quaint or old fashioned. They make fun of us for being so far from civilization and call us hillbillies. They think we aren’t smart enough to know better and to want more for our lives like they have.
But you know something? A ten minute drive into my county seat gets me to work and to a grocery store, pharmacy and hardware with most of what I need. A thirty minute country drive gets me to a larger town on a road where I’m not in a wall of traffic that’s either sitting still or driving 80 mph.
Plus, I have nature and clean air.
I’ll take my country home, far from the noise of traffic, where I’m immersed in the goodness of what the Earth offers over the steel and concrete misery that our nation’s cities have to offer.
It’s nice to visit. The bookstores, shopping options and museums feel like a destination and a treat that way. Meanwhile, you’ll find me tooling around in my “backward” country life.
If only those who criticize knew they are actually the ones who have it backward!
Go breathe some fresh air, friends. If you’re lucky enough to live with it, don’t take it for granted. If you’re not lucky like me, your lungs, mind and spirit need a break.
Life for most people these days is far busier than it ought to be. Some days come with to-do lists too big to manage, and other days, the tasks start to feel a little unnecessary. I have been toying with an approach lately that has been changing my attitude toward my personal task list and has overhauled how that work is prioritized.
I ask myself this question:
What can I do that will most improve my life right now?
There’s a lot that needs attention here at home. Honestly, my closet needs to be cleaned in the worst way and I have stacks of things needing to be given away or sold. My kitchen floor could benefit from a good mop. But when I thought about all these things that need attention Friday night, I zoomed in on the things that would make the most difference to my daily life.
In this case, I chose to focus on my bathroom. The shower drain has been running slowly and everything needed cleaned. I also took the recycling to the car so I could drop it off at the recycling bins in town the next day. I needed to chop veggies, make pasta salad as well as some pudding, and tidy the kitchen to make meal prep easier the next day.
These are things I focused on. They took up most of the evening and I was pleased for the sense of accomplishment.
Did I do everything on my list? Nope, I did not. Some things will wait for another day.
What I did accomplish is more important: I changed my attitude.
We tend to think of household chores as just chores. We have to clean house, take out the trash, water the flowers, clean the cat’s litterbox, and prepare meals every freaking day whether we want to or not.
That doesn’t sound so great, does it?
But your internal dialogue shifts when you think of it as doing things to make your life better.
For example, I scoop Scout’s litterbox before bed every night whether it needs it or not. This improves my life because he is less likely to throw litter out on the floor at 3 a.m. He is pictured above looking quite smug because he knows he runs the house and I do not disagree.
Moving recycling to the car the night before streamlined the morning and guaranteed I would actually take the recycling. I know this because I had walked past it the three previous mornings. Having a clean shower with an open drain makes my mornings so much more pleasant!
The rest of the stuff on my list needs done – dusting, tidying the sock drawer, reorganizing the freezer – these things all need attention but aren’t vital to an easier life. I’ll get to them another night.
I’m also trying to reframe how I think about certain tasks. Watering flowers allows me to nourish small lives that make my life beautiful. Washing dishes can’t be multitasked but it does let me listen to some good music or just brainstorm while I work. Preparing food today will save some time tomorrow and many foods like soups, pasta salad, and casseroles actually taste better on day two.
Our mindset can make or break us. It can improve our lives exponentially or ruin our day. So, framing things in a more positive light makes a huge difference. Coming to think of these chores as things that will improve my life has made a tremendous difference to me. It’s still a relatively new approach but I’m curious to see the difference it can make in the future.
Incidentally, I told you about another life improvement strategy a while back. You can read about it here!
Lots of people come and go from your life. On my rural county road, I enjoyed a lifetime of quiet security where I knew everyone in my neighorhood. My family has been in the same spot since the mid 19th century and most of my neighbors are generational residents as well. Many are people my dad grew up with and that my mother has known since they were married in 1972.
The face of the neighborhood has changed as people have aged, as some have died, and a few have just moved away. Last year, we lost one of those neighbors in a terrible blow to our little community. David and his wife Teresa have known my parents since they were young. Dad grew up with them. I remember spending time at their house when I was little. Toward the end of David’s life, they spent a lot of time with my folks, trying to slow the clock and enjoy each other’s company.
He was a good guy, a kind man, and the sort of neighbor everyone should have.
The other day, I located something I’ve been searching for since before David died. It’s a wooden giraffe, a pull-toy that he made for me when I was little. I suspect he made a lot of toys for the children in his life but I feel lucky that he thought to give me one.
It’s not just a toy. It’s so much more than that. For one, people don’t make things like they used to. Having something that was created by a person who enjoyed working with his hands is important. Kids need things that weren’t made in factories and people need to do more things that are productive.
More importantly, it’s a keepsake from a dear neighbor and family friend who thought enough of his little neighbor with blonde hair in pigtails to give her something special.
Since I finally found it, the little giraffe won’t be going back in the box. He’ll have a place of honor in my home as a reminder of the difference that people can make in the lives of others and, more importantly, how a person’s existence can cause ripples in life’s pond long after they’re gone.
Here we are, a very long time ago. I was not yet two. I don’t remember the day but I do remember the dress.
I’m guessing David would be surprised to know I kept his giraffe and that it matters so much to me. But isn’t that how life goes? As we travel through life, we tend to think about how we are impacted by the world but forget that we are impacting the world too. A gift, a smile, a neighborly wave – these things matter and all culminate into the immeasurable presence we leave behind.
Around here, I have shifted into full on summer mode. That means I’m mostly indoors, eating sugar free popsicles and reading books. The outdoors are miserable around here and I spend a lot of time hoping the electric grid can keep up with everyone’s air conditioning needs. The power has gone out twice in the last three days but neither outage lasted more than two hours. When it happened today, my house didn’t even really heat up because I already had the curtains closed.
Phew!
Around here, Scout is watching me carefully. He doesn’t like when I leave but also seems to worry when I’m home too much.
Around here, my very happiest thing to do is to go to bed early. I take a book, turn on the ceiling fan and play some French instrumental music to aid in relaxing. It’s funny because going to bed early always felt like punishment when I was a kid and now it’s pure luxury.
Around here, these orange lilies are populating the roadsides. Some people call them ditch lilies or tiger lilies. We call them flags. I have never known why we call them that but I do know they are as invasive as they are pretty.
Around here, I’m torn between not heating up the house with the oven and not wasting food. Last night I made a nice veggie quiche using leftover scalloped potatoes as the crust. Odds and ends of leftover broccoli, onions, peppers and mozarella cheese on top perfectly complemented the egg layer.
Around here, I’m hoping that all my summer loving pals are outside in the heat, soaking up the sun’s rays and thoroughly enjoying this heat and humidity which chokes the life out of all us winter/fall people. I don’t begrudge their right to heat, nor do I understand it. I will, however, take umbrage if I hear a peep out of any of them about being hot. Hahaha….ahem…..
Around here, I’m studying the pictures and news out of the west where snowstorms rage during this first full week of summer. What I wouldn’t give to be there now. While I won’t be traveling west, I do have a short adventure planned for next month. I also had a mini adventure this weekend and need to tell you about my visit to the Sherman House in Lancaster.
Around here, I choose to practice gratitude. I’m grateful for central air, for an indoor job that allows me to give my little house panther the life he believes he deserves, for clean drinking water, for plenty of good books to read, and for a life that is much easier than that of many others.
What’s happening in your neck of the woods? What are you grateful for today?
There’s always a moment in spring when I look around and wonder when everything became so pretty. I had that moment last night when I stepped outside after the rain to take care of a few chores.
Maybe it’s because I’ve been voluntarily sequestered and missing the changes, trying desperately to shake off spring allergies and move on with life. Maybe it really did happen overnight.
Regardless, I suddenly noticed everything was a thousand shades of green, that the trees have filled out, and that the pink and purple creeping phlox are creeping steadily across the hill behind my house.
This clematis has exploded into bloom and is a striking sight, an unexpected outcome considering that this plant was a sad little impulse buy from a clearance rack a few years ago.
This is one of the reasons I appreciate spring. There’s always something new to explore and some little living thing is given a chance to contribute to the beauty and intrigue of this world.
If your spring allergies can stand it, I hope you get outside and enjoy all the beautiful changes in the world this weekend.
