Dear Summer, It’s You, Not Me

Dear Summer,

It wasn’t easy for me to accept the end of our relationship. You’re the one who chose to leave. It’s you, not me!

I may no longer have you in my life, but I have the memories.

We’d plan our day. Would we bike familar paths?
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We met in mid-June, the 21^st. I remembered the exact date because it was the solstice. Our friendship bloomed. We were inseparable. Mornings we dangled our feet off the pier, drank coffee and planned the day. Would we bike familiar paths or hike new trails? Would we enjoy a picnic lunch? Grill for dinner? So many choices. No matter what we decided, together, we enjoyed the outdoors.

You brought excitement into my life.
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July brought excitement to our friendship. Love ignited. Fireworks lit up the sky. You brought exhilaration into my life. I never felt so alive! Resting in the shade we drank iced tea or relaxing on the front porch we sipped wine. It didn’t matter as long I was with you.

Our days together were so bright!
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We sizzled in August. My heart buzzed about like the hummingbirds we fed. We weathered the occasional conflicts. Aren’t all relationships stormy from time to time? When our skies cleared, our future appeared bright.

You seemed so carefree!
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You suggested the road trip in September. Taking to the highway we lingered our way around Lake Michigan. South Haven ice cream, the Mackinac ferry, the Munising waterfalls – you seemed so carefree.

When I think about it now, I should have seen the breakup coming. You talked longingly of traveling elsewhere, anywhere in the Southern Hemisphere. I should have known then that our relationship was fleeting.

I vividly remember the day you left.
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As vividly as I remembered the day we met, I remember the day you left- September 22^nd. I recollected the exact date because of the equinox. Day and night held equal hours. It was painful to let you go. I wouldn’t hold you back, as if I could.

It’s been a few weeks since you’ve moved on. I think you’re traveling to Sydney now. Even though it wasn’t healthy for me to check your whereabouts, I couldn’t help but log onto weather.com and AccuWeather. I imagined your sunny smile focused on someone else and my heart panged.

Fall calms me.
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I’m over you now. There’s someone new. I first met Fall on the day of our break up. He suggested biking the same paths we did. I couldn’t at first, but Fall didn’t give up. Before long we hiked and biked familiar trails and paths, but it was different with Fall. There was ease to it. He calmed me as we stoked the bonfire by the beach.

Fall is colorful, generous, and cool tempered.

The more time I spend with Fall the more I appreciate his qualities. He’s colorful and generous and cool tempered. He promises that he’ll be with me till the end. We never know when the end will come, but I’ll cherish the time we have together.

I’ve learned that it’s possible to love, to let go, and to love again. I’m sure, Summer, that our paths will cross again. When they do, I’ll remember the happy times.