Summer's Last Hurrah

Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass on a summer day listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is hardly a waste of time. ~John Lubbock

This time of year has a sadness, a last sigh, a yearning for cool, brightly colored fall days to come. It is still summer for a few more days and before it's over, there is one more bar-b-que and family gathering to send it off with a last hurrah.

Clean the deck, patio and lawn. Rake, prune and repot the scraggly plants that didn’t do too well through the hundred plus days of summer.

Hang the garden lights that have been sitting around since June. Spruce up the chairs from cobwebs and dust.

Anticipation is building.

Boxes of tomatoes bought from a local farmer last week, are the basis for home canned tomatoes—out of which comes the pot of spaghetti sauce needed for the lasagna yet be prepared.

Everyone will chip in with potluck dishes, salads, beverages and hors d’oeuvres.

Soon I will scroll through the summer drinks gathered on Pinterest for just such an occasion. Not to mention the desserts—that the women will complain about, but always take at least a taste or two, or more.

Weather is expected to drop to the low nineties—great relief from the hundred plus temperatures.

So, for summer’s last few days, I get to be lazy with family and friends—gossip, learn new developments in everyone’s lives, re-visit the past, and like Langston Hughes says:

            Like a welcome summer rain, humor may suddenly cleanse and cool the earth, the air and you. 

Have a good week.

What plans do you have to send the summer on its way—or has it already gone for you?