Even in the beautiful weather Vancouver has had over the last couple days, people are talking about the last days of summer and the coming of fall. Everyone’s trying to squeeze in the last of their beach weekends and park weekends and pool parties, the last activities before the kids go back to school. The fall and back-to-school sales are already on, and in the park, the early-bird Japanese maples are already starting to go orange.
For the first time in four years, between grad school and teaching, the “back-to-school” phrase has no meaning for me, and neither does the fall. This afternoon, we’re flying to Honolulu for three years of summer, so I won’t see much in the way of fall sales, or my fall clothes for that matter. But after all this travel and time off, I still feel vacation coming to an end.
When we hit ground, we’re going to be in a crazy flurry of activity, trying to get moved into our house and get our stuff delivered, getting basic stuff like utilities set up and addresses changed and more complicated stuff like figuring out a timeline and a budget for fixing up the house and paying off our summer and moving expenses, and eventually, getting back to the daily grind. That “work” thing that people talk about.
I’m actually looking forward to it all.
I think my natural state is one of whirling motion that might as well be called chaos. I’m always trying to make order out of the chaos around me, and I thrive on that. But occasionally, there comes a point where nothing is moving. That leaves me just to spin on my own, and that creates a stress all its own. I’ve been acquainted with my own personality long enough to know that I don’t do well when I don’t have some puzzle to wrestle or seemingly impossible task to do battle with, so the idea of running off the plane and into a flurry of activity is a welcome one for me!
So as much fun as this long summer has been, I’m ready for what’s next. Here’s wishing you the best on whatever challenges and adventures lie ahead for you as summer ends, and I’ll talk to you from Hawaii!
