summer grows shorter

PHOTOS BY MARK PSORAS/THE REPORTER
DRINK IN A BIT OF LATE SUMMER'S BEAUTY...


OK, let’s all say it.
How the heck did it get to be the end of August already?
You can hear the chorus of anguished voices of area kids, as they lament the end of their summer vacation.
You can hear the joyful sighs of parents who have run out of things to keep those same kids busy.
And you can hear the cash registers humming away at all those back-to-school shopping sprees.
I, for one, don’t mourn the end of August.
As hot and humid as this summer has been, I simply hope that September cuts us a break and ushers in slightly cooler days.
I do lament not having anyone to take shopping for school supplies, though.
My days of taking a youngster to buy crayons and pencils, choose a few new outfits or pick out a bookbag or Trapper Keeper are long, long gone.
And I have to admit, that was a favorite time of the year for me.
There was something about heading to the store for a new lunchbox, colored pencils and notebook paper that just felt so comforting.
Not to mention the wave of nostalgia that would hit when you breathed in the aromas that those supplies seem to emit.
It took me back to my own childhood somehow, and even though school days weren’t always idyllic, the intervening years dimmed the unpleasant memories and seemed to highlight the happy ones.
Yes, I did love back-to-school shopping.
But no, that’s OK; you don’t have to offer to lend me your children. I have my memories.
As others may, as noted, be bathed in disbelief that August is drawing to a close and the start of school is nigh, I am simply basking in anticipation of autumn.
I can’t wait to pull out some sweaters; put away summery home decor and create a feeling of fall instead; enjoy the turning leaves and, if lucky, breathe in the unbeatable aroma of those same leaves being burned (much more difficult now, with so many regulations).
And of course once fall arrives, Halloween can’t be far behind.
So enjoy these fleeting days of August and the upcoming Labor Day holiday.
I, for one, will be dreaming of autumn.