Wonderful Wednesday #127

No longer wading through the hot days and some easy small joys because of it.

Hot tea can be enjoyed once more!

It feels as if I’m still recovering from a few too many ‘too warm days.’ Heavy-hot one’s that take more than they give; for me at least.

Never-ending feeling and, the sort that blur into each other, each one fuzzy-edged, heavy and slow-feeling. Each early morning pup walk felt like walking through treacle and, even when the sun didn’t join us, the humidity hung low and slow and heavy too and the more heat that came, the longer the days felt or were or might have actually been. They were so full up of light and heat that I actually can’t remember them properly. They are still a muddle, each one feeling relentless to me. So ‘too much’ were they that the only thing I can remember is how useless I was most days.

Behold! A breeeeeze!

I felt some shame in it, to be honest. It felt like the world (!!!) was heralding the beginning of summer, rejoicing in the light and spending their days lolling and being and soaking it all in and up. I spent those very same days, repeatedly checking my weather app, tracking the humidity and largely counting down the days to a temperature that fell below 22 degrees celsius and a breeze that made me feel alive and not as if i could be suffocating under a heavy humidity reading.

Sun-scorched fields and a cool woodland peep-hole!

I think I’ll always find summer tricky to navigate. I know that I always have. I remember wishing for the days to last forever when I was younger. Running barefoot in my pyjamas on the grass that had only just been cut after supper. Feigning sleep, wanting to keep on keeping on because there was light and day to do it in and even if my nights were shorter and my eyes more tired because of it; the cycle was quite addictive and maybe I ws young enough to bounce back from it - who knows.

These days I need balance. Like most I crave light and warmth and sun after winter. But just enough of it and not too much. The younger ‘me’ who would eat chocolate buttons until she felt sick or squeeze in an extra helping of macaroni cheese even when she was full up now knows that she’ll always feel better balanced. And a sudden jump in temperature from fifteen degrees only ten days earlier, to a nudge over thirty degrees only the same amount of days after isn’t that.

Before the sun got to them! And me!

So I’ve been lying low, going slow if you will and trying to make sure I’m being extra kind to myself. Lots of mineral-rich food and plenty of hydration and a real focus on less screens and more doing of ‘things’ that fill my cup in other ways: Walking, cycling, breathing, reading, singing etc etc. And honestly? I’m only just beginning to feel the benefits of that and I’m ok with that: A sort of sunshine jet lag recovery protocol.

So there has been lots to be grateful for—small moments, nearly forgotten ‘things’ that are not least just a cool breeze and a humidity reading that is not 80%. I love to write these lists anyway but always find them even more beneficial when I have been struggling in some shape or form.

Scribbles.

1 Cold showers. The most refreshing at the end of a long day and even though we’re now much more of a comfortable 16 degrees celsius when I take my evening shower; I’m still flipping the temperature right down for the last little bit. I have sort of gotten used to it. It brings me back to myself a little, helps refocus my mind and re-centre my nervous system, i think. It’s a particularly lovely new ‘thing’ I might keep up. But let’s come back to that in mid-winter.

2 The smell of rain on hot ground after a long and dry and relentless-feeling day. Petrichor! A glorious word to perfectly describe that delicious scent of an end of summer day and one which I’d honestly bottle if I could.

3 Salted fruit. Namely either, wedges of watermelon sprinkled with flaked sea salt and a squeeze of lime or, slices of kiwi fruit dusted with flaky salt. Zingy, refreshing and absolutely delicious!

4 Cobbled together suppers that don’t need heat or effort. I wish I had been better prepared here but, to avoid me eating a bowl of granola and yoghurt I was grateful for a freezer of lamb meatballs to squash into yoghurt-y flatbreads piled high with torn up mint and rocket or, toasted dark rye bread with smoked salmon, cream cheese and avocado.

5 The cool of the morning. Which, sometimes actually didn’t feel cool but then did when it become midday and the air felt unbearable, again. Also the early morning walks did help in some ways. Searching for dew and damp dungarees because of it. The smell of the day before still lingering. White flashes of bunny tails luckily not spotted by the pup and, the screeches and swooshes of swallows and swifts(?) above our heads.

6 A return to good sleep after bad sleep. The relief! The absolute joy that is seven hours of consistent sleep! Sleep is honestly my super power and without proper sleep I am useless. Oh, and a return to enjoying my morning cup of tea and not simply wishing it would just. Cool. Quicker.

The inspiration.

What small joys and nearly forgotten moments are you most grateful for this week? Did you embrace the heat? Do you enjoy it or was it also a little too much for you too? You’ll have to let me know!