Dear Summer,
We’ve known each other a long time, but we’ve always had one of those on and off relationships. You always show up at your convenience and leave right when I was beginning to get used to you. How many times have you suddenly disappeared and left me in the cold?
Oh, those early days were magical…We were children on an endless playground. We laughed and danced among the flowers. We would swing and run and lay out in the grass with huge abandon. We wished on stars and stayed out late…and those gentle days seemed to last forever.
I admit, you were hot. That’s what attracted me to you in the first place. Your arms around my shoulders and caressing my face was the ultimate in true love. You were fresh and clean and smelled wildly of chlorine and grass and barbecues.
Then you started making me lazy. I wore less clothing. I avoided my chores. I dropped everything just to be with you.
Soon you began to smother me- burdened me with gardening and mowing and outdoor chores. I had to wash the car, trim the trees, weed the flowers, and wash the windows. The work never stopped. We rarely played anymore.You started bringing your pesky friends to every outdoor event. You became obnoxious and boring.
Summer, there is part of me that loves you more than any I have known. But there is also a part of me that yearns for change. I dream of romantic dinners in front of the fireplace. Woolen sweaters and snow falling beyond the window. Wine and yellow leaves and the smell of cinnamon. I dream of days just staying in bed under the covers-of no commitments to yard work or garage cleaning or the stickiness of your touch.
I want a cool breeze through my hair. I want my cheeks to sting, my hands to numb, my body to snuggle and bundle up with a new season.
Without trying to be cruel, I must say I am growing tired of you. I know, I know- it will be like all the other times we’ve broken up. I’ll be wanting you back in a few months. I’ll be wishing I could feel you again. I’ll be cold and abandoned and blue.
But, please- let me go. Just for awhile. Let me loose from your humidity and staleness and burdensome heat. Let me enjoy the sunshine and the rain and dancing again. I want to sing and grow and be free.
We can meet again soon. It’s not like you don’t know where I live. I’m sure six or seven months apart will only cause me to love you more.
But I have to be sure.
Thanks for the flowers. The fresh vegetables. The picnics. The moonlit strolls. The fireflies and song birds and days of clear blue skies.
I will never forget our moments together.
But please, un-smother me. Let me go. Tell me farewell soon. I just can’t stand it any longer.
Love Forever,
Rae
