Friday, June 11, 2010

Eau De Summer























It's here. And it's crazy how it happens. There seems to be one day a year, where everything is subtly & suddenly different. It's that day that makes someone say to you, "It feels like summer today". And then it's here.

Nowhere is this a more welcomed phrase than in a place that has just made it through a long, cold winter. Especially when spring has been teasing for months.

I grew up in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Northern California. The winters were long & snowy, and although the first snow was usually welcomed with the excitement of a winter spent skiing, there's that stage at the end of winter where it's just kind of slushy & cold, the thrill has worn off and your just sick of being cold ALL the time.

I'm fortunate to live in Hawaii now, where although they are mellow and pleasant, we do have a winter. It gets dark a little earlier, huge waves come crashing onto the North Shore, it rains a lot & dare I say, it even gets chilly! Hey, don't hate, I made it through my share of the real ones! I like winters here, actually.

But then the days start to be a little longer, and you notice it gradually happening. The sun hangs around more during the day, you start to thaw out, if you've been in the real winter, and then... you smell it. Summer. I know for everyone it's different. But there's usually that smell that for you, means summer.

I have a small collection of such summer smells, but I think at the top of the list is watermelon.
My mom used to get those huge ones from the store, and the moment she cut into it, we were bathed in the smell of summer. There is nothing more summerish in my book, than having a huge slice of watermelon, juice dripping off your face, spitting tiny black seeds farther than your grandpa. But that's just me.

There's also that smell of fresh cut grass, which brings me straight back to elementary school and the realization that we finally get to have a decent recess! But most of my summer smells revolve around food. Big shock, I know.

It's not just me, right? You know what I'm talking about? Have you smelled yours yet? If not, what is that smell that you will be sniffing out as summer lifts it's lid? Whatever it is, I hope you take a moment when it finds you, close your eyes, inhale and let it take you back to the memory it carries of summer.

5 comments:

  1. It is winter in Melbourne and your post makes me long for hot summer days with watermelon!

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  2. Joy is writing in from Melbourne? Cool. Aw, sorry, forgive the pun!
    Really: summer smells........and summer fruits. Love all the fresh produce available right now. It makes you feel healthier eating fruit and salads.....too hot for anything else right now! Speaking of.....I've got dibs on the last piece of watermelon and it's beckoning me right now! Thx for your beautiful words, dear blogger.

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  3. Ugh, Joy! Sorry! Well, you can live vicariously through my watermelon!
    SB:No worries, glad you enjoy the ramblings!
    To you both: But what are YOUR summer smells??? Do tell!

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  4. :) Summer smalls? Watermelon is definitely one!
    Plums rotting in the backyards,
    Gardenias and roses
    Tomato warm from the sun
    Basil
    Mango, and lychees down from Queensland....

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  5. Meat on the grill, lawn being mowed, and the freshwater lake we summer on. Such a different smell than the ocean in Hawaii.

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