After a two-week hiatus from bicycling, I got on my Schwinn Family Truckster bicycle (see page https://www.mrvintageman.com/bicycling) a couple of days ago and rode the gravel path that runs near a local conservation center. During my ride it became apparent to me that something big had changed over that two-week break: late Summer had arrived.
I can see the waning of the season in the slant of the sun’s rays on the leaves of the trees. I hear the changes in the stillness of the air: the raucous mating songs of the birds have gone quiet. Now that school is back in session, the sounds of children laughing and squealing as they play in the nearby park water features have vanished. Only the wind whispering through the leaves of the trees challenge the silence.
Sumac and Russian sage, harbingers of late summer.
I can feel the change by the coolness of the air on my skin as I coast down hills. Even though the sun stands overhead, it’s rays no longer sting my back and shoulders.
Late summer brings out a sort of melancholy in me. It’s the awareness that time is passing and that autumn is coming soon. Which is weird, because I love autumn and look forward to its arrival every year. It’s my favorite season so I should be happy. But there is just something about the passing of Summer that makes one keenly aware that one’s life is short and growing ever shorter.
A possible cause of this wistfulness is because it’s obvious that the days are getting shorter. The sun sets earlier and earlier every evening. The sunlight is not quite as strong as it was just a couple of weeks ago. Now, the sunlight is just as strong now as it was in mid-April and I certainly didn’t get glum back then. Of course, after a dark and dreary winter season, the increasing daylight of early spring brings with it a sense of optimism. Not so the late days of August and early September.
Another possible reason for my gloomy disposition is perhaps Pavlovian: when I was growing up school started again right after Labor Day. The realization that the lazy, hazy days of summer were soon to be replaced by the grinding boredom of enforced “learning” always brought a sense of despair to me as a child. Perhaps that sensation is so imprinted on my psyche that I feel that trepidation decades later.
Plus, aren’t we all guilty of putting too many expectations on ourselves during summer? Haven’t we all at one point or another made big plans for the season, only to let the days slide by until the season is over? Promises such as “this is the summer I lose 10lbs” or “this summer I’m going to build that deck”, etc., etc. I had plans to dig out a dying serviceberry tree and tidying up a section of the garden on the south side of the house. Probably won’t happen this year.
I did however accomplish one of my summer goals: I rode in the Ride and Revel cycling event that was held in Greeley in July.
It was very hot and muggy, and I got a little nauseous from getting overheated. But I rode 40 miles and crossed the finish line in under 4 hours. With a broken spoke on my rear wheel. I’m a beast!
Anyway, back to my recent bicycle ride. It was very enjoyable. The sun was shining bright (after weeks of haze from wildfires and clouds from an unseasonable cold spell) without being miserably hot and my legs felt strong after the time off. A relaxing ride on a bike can certainly offset the melancholy of the passing season. Getting outside and moving has a way of clearing out the mental cobwebs.
Autumn might be fast approaching, but it is still summer for awhile longer. Plenty of time to get out, soak up some vitamin D and enjoy the passing scenery from my saddle.
See you on the trails!
