If the weather in Seattle is any indication, summer is on its last legs.
The end of summer has always been bittersweet for me. The feelings I have about it haven’t changed all that much since I was a kid. I never really liked going to school – I wasn’t one of those kids who couldn’t wait to go back and see all their Awesome Friends! (insert smile with big dimple here) – I was the kid who got anxiety at the thought of having to wake up early, catch the school bus, and do homework.
But there was something beautiful about September, too. It symbolized a fresh start. And if you’ve ever been lucky enough to experience the fall season in Ontario, there’s something about the crisp air and the sunshine combined with the reds and golds of the trees that always makes the fall a magical time of year.
I have many, many memories of trudging through piles of leaves wearing my “fall coat” wrapped up in my “fall scarf”, heading for the bus stop with my knapsack over my shoulder, dreaming about all the cool things that were certain to happen to me during the new school year. Maybe I’d finally get an ‘A’ in math. Maybe I’d finally get Mr. Long-Time Crush to notice me. Maybe I’d be able to convince my mom to buy me cooler clothes so that Mr. Long-Time Crush would notice me. Maybe this would be the year I’d become Super Popular.
They were just September dreams, and as the year would wear on with nothing really major changing (I don’t think in my whole life I’ve ever earned an ‘A’ in math, and Long-Time Crush never did make the transition to First Boyfriend), the dreams would disappear and reality would set in. Not that the reality was so bad.
But what is it about September that makes everything feel possible?
So, in honor of September 1st, here’s to possibilities. May you get everything you wish for this month.