Solstice was yesterday. The longest day of the year.
Summer is my favorite season. Partly because my hands and feet are always cold, and it’s such a delight to just go outside and let the balmy air warm me up like a blanket.
It’s also the palpable feeling of vibrancy and life in the air. It hits as soon as I wake up in the morning, and this energy feeds me deeply, especially in times lately when life feels chaotic and people are suffering. My own people, and all the people. I open my phone and read about today’s fresh nightmares of humanity (I hate the news)…the contrast of this bright, hot, sexy season is the nourishment I need.
Beautiful things are still blooming, delicious foods are growing and ripening, and the sun is kissing our skin and large bodies of water are beckoning to be played in.
The arrival of this summer brought fresh reminders that this season of life exists at all. And I’ve been trying to soak it in with my favorite summer rituals—my ways of being that can only be in the summer, when the air is hot and the light is ample and the food is fresh.
My three favorite summer rituals are:
Spending time outside in the morning
This one’s easy, but impactful. Just pour your morning coffee/tea/elixir of choice, and walk out the door. Before your day gets going, spend five minutes outside among the green and the morning sun and the bird sounds. Commune with the weather and the growing things, and just see what happens.
Drinking sun tea
I’ve written a whole post about this. My favorite blend this summer is two bags of Bengal Spice tea (sweet and spicy with cinnamon)—Good Earth makes a good substitute—along with two bags of Yogi Detox tea. I add some sliced ginger to the water, then clip some mint, lemon balm and rosemary from my garden and stuff it in the jar.
It tastes like magic soaked in sunshine, I swear.
Making (and eating) bread salad
Grilled garlic bread salad seems to epitomize for me ripest summer flavors from the garden and farm, featuring the season’s finest tomatoes, cucumbers, basil and corn. But insert your own fresh recipe, and make it like a prayer of thanks to the abundance of the season. Perhaps on your front porch, or a blanket outside?
If you liked this post, you’ll probably also like my 10 simple ways to celebrate summer.
