Reading the subject line of this post might make you wonder, ‘what’s to make peace with? Summer’s awesome!’
And it is! So much to do outside – tennis games, golf lessons, bike riding, swimming, spending time at the beach, a lake house, a national park or just a park in your neighborhood. Open-air bars, outdoor concerts, picnics, camping – truly, the list is endless.
But, summer, with all of its amazing activities, makes me uncomfortable.
Not the activities themselves, mind you. I am an absolute tennis nut, and I’m as happy as the next gal to sit in a beach chair and read. But my hard-won writing routine goes straight out the window once the temps hit 70, and suddenly, I’m adrift. I have no schedule to keep me at my desk, so I ricochet around my day like a wayward pinball. It’s a privileged problem, to be sure, but one I struggle with every year.
Summer is spontaneity. Sunny out? Time to head to the beach. Or plant those flowers. Or get a drink at that cute place on the lakefront. Even WFH peeps manage to squeeze in a walk or at least work on their tan while tapping away on their laptops. With so many healthy, fun, positive activities to pursue, guarding my special writing time seems downright Scrooge-ish.
Also, summer allows me to procrastinate doing the very thing I love to do, which is a very screwed up way to operate. If I had a therapist, he or she would be able to concur. Fredrik Bachman, author of A Man Called Ove and Anxious People explains this habit in this hilarious monologue:
This summer, even though I will get nowhere near Mr. Backman’s eight hours of writing, I’ve started to make a detailed plan each day, working my writing time around my summer activities instead of the other way around. This way I can enjoy the summer activities guilt-free, and hopefully get a little fulfilling work done in between. We’ll see how this goes…
How about you? Is there a season that stresses you out? Which is it, and why? I’d love to hear your stories.