Spring in My Step
It is coming. Sooner than we want, but it is coming. The cool, breezy air is redolent with citrus blossoms. The cacti are beginning to bloom. They, like the leaves turning in the northeast in October, warn of the coming months of unpleasant weather. It is Arizona going into summer.
The mornings and evenings are still cool. For those of us who have lived here a long time, bordering on cold in the mid-50s to lower 60s. We relish the idea of putting on a light jacket or sweater for the little bit of time we have left. Before the five to six months of hot, hot, hot followed by more hot.
We read that it might be a wet monsoon season this year. We were blessed with one last year that made the summer bearable and at times almost pleasant. We hope it is true but cannot give it much credence as we have been promised rain and El Nino too many times only to have our dreams dashed.
As I walk the dogs at the leisurely 8 a.m. take off time, I think of the soon to be 5:30 and 6 a.m. departures that will last until October if we are lucky or into early November. I can feel the dread creep up and I push it down because I must live in the moment of beautiful, cool, Spring weather.
To be honest, I do not hate the summers here. I have lived here too long to waste that energy. You stay mostly inside where it is cool and the air conditioning makes it seem as though you are having a year ‘round life in the 70s. I have mastered the art of maximizing the “cheap” hours of utilities for comfort.
You do not have to shovel sunshine nor is it slippery. Our only equivalent to black ice is extremely hot black asphalt. The day it was 122 degrees back in 1990, I remember walking back into work and having my high heels sink into the parking lot tar. As a one-time thing it was okay, but the memory still can make me worry about the coming months.
It will all be okay. It comes and goes each year. I will revel in the ability to have open doors and fresh air. I will not project into the future the day I will have to “close up for summer.” It is just the guessing game for the first 100-degree day and the praying for the last. Until that all happens, I will continue to be grateful for the coolness in the breeze.
