My Experiments in the Practice of Everyday Life

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June 3, 2012
22 Comment

“I Wish I Could Describe Better the Kind of Happiness Mid-Summer Always Has Given Me…”

“I wish I could describe better the kind of happiness mid-summer always has given me, ever since my infancy almost when the wide extents of ripe corn stretched away endlessly and gave me even then a feeling of security, of peace, of happiness. The harvest songs of all peoples have given vent to it, but not in words.”

–Bernard Berenson, Sunset and Twilight

Does a particular sign of the season give you a special feeling of happiness? Or melancholy? I love seeing fruit stands along the roads.

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  • http://ratz-whatcanisay.blogspot.com/ Rathi

    This sounds silly but i love the sweet, melodious, whirring of the ceiling fan.

  • Lena

    snow. it gives me childish joy and adult peace – at the same time.

  • Peninith1

    Here, now, I luxuriate in the glow of a string of butterfly-shaped lights on my deck as evening falls, but equally, rejoice in a fresh fall of snow in my home town in the early morning or late aftenoon, the earthy scent and dry rush of autumn leaves on a bright afternoon with an intensely blue sky, the sudden appearance of forsythia in early spring despite damp and chill–the natural world makes me so happy, at any season.

  • http://www.thegirlinyogapants.com/ The Girl in Yoga Pants

    Fireflies. I love sitting outside in the evenings and watching them twinkle. It’s so beautiful.

  • Susan H

    Lightening bugs! :)

  • T.

    When the cherry tree blossoms, the air smells sweet and I feel the excitement of something new.  Alternatively, I can ‘t help feeling a little sad at the sight of wilted daisies, it means that summer is almost over.

  • http://remadebyhand.com/ Erin

    I love the feeling of walking out of an air conditioned building and feeling that initial burst of sun on my skin. Of course, five minutes later I’ll be sweating and uncomfortable, but that first moment is wonderful.

  • James Lawlor

    I 

  • James Lawlor

    For me, every season has it’s particular feeling of happiness–and melancholy. My favorite has always been autumn, when the air is crisp and cool but before the sun has lost all of it’s warmth, and when the blue sky is set against the vivid leaves. And then there’s the quiet melancholy of the first cool, rainy day when all you want to do is sit by the window with a mug of hot chocolate and and old-favorite book. 

    In winter, joy comes from that first biting cold night where the stars are clear, and the wind smells of woodsmoke and snow.  (It’s even better when it does snow, of course–a relative rarity in Alabama.) 

    Spring, of course, when the clouds of winter depart and the sun and warm breeze begin to reappear–especially that perfect week when the air is no longer cold, but before the pollen hits.  And the perfect late spring day on the beach, where it’s just hot enough to make a cold drink a welcome relief. 
    Summer is the particular smell of lazy summer afternoon–not that I could possibly ever describe it, but I know it instantly whenever I find it. And summer is sweat and yardwork and pleasant nights where the sunset seems to last forever

  • Noel711

    Oh, this time of year… its the easiest time to be happy:
    The light comes early, and with it, birds’ song.
    To be awakened by happy birds… is lovely.
    And there’s such a sense of hope: everything is green, and young
    and new. There’s baby bunnies in the grass, and nests aplomb with
    eggs. And Butterflies floating by for no reason but just joy.
    And tiny fawns teetering in fields..
    How can you not be amazed at the joy of it all!

    We know how this will turn out:
    summer will descend, and warmth leads to heat.
    Soon summer will burn itself out,
    and the birds will stop singing,
    and what is new will become familiar.
    And we’ll long for fall with chilly morns,
    and moonlit nights.

    but it’s what is new, and hopeful and young
    that reminds us of the joy that surround us.

  • Amy Hagerup

    First of all, I love the title of your blog. Second of all, to answer your question, I love the time of dusk any time of year really, but especially when the weather is pleasant and my husband and I can go for our evening walk. Being out of doors is very therapeutic for me.

  • StephanieWaasdorp

    I love the smell of the sea in my hear and on my skin after a day on the beach in the summer. The feeling that comes with it is priceless! 

  • http://www.goodietimes.com/ Goodie

    The sound of the street cleaner going by my house….brings me back every time to when I was a kid…and those awesome days of Summer.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Charlotte-Nilsson/100003943334381 Charlotte Nilsson

    It’s weird; at midsummer, the feeling of hope&anticipation that I associate with spring has shifted into a more melancholy feeling that comes with summer (“oh, it’s already heeeere”). Wonder if I could pinpoint the actual turning point; should be around that time when the leaves are out and most of the birds have arrived from the south.

    • http://www.mind-meditations.com/ Rachel

       I get a little melancholy after June 21st, the longest day of the year. I know the days will be getting shorter from then on out, and before long it will be dark at 5pm again.

      • Kate

        I live in Minnesota and hate the long, brutal winters (but as I love my husband, who won’t move, and my mother has moved here to grow old near me, I’m tied to this place through love of others). I usually get sad after July 4, because it seems that, even though the summer months of June, July and August are only about a third over, everything goes so quickly after the 4th. And when the State Fair rolls around, then it’s really the end! I’m trying to find a way to adjust my attitude, but I don’t think I’m ever going to embrace winter. I’ve tried. I’m just a summer person and wouldn’t miss winters if I lived in a tropical climate.

  • Tarossjordan

    Now that you mention it, I usually make a mental note of summer, when I walk outside and notice that the temperature inside my house is the same as the outside temperature. 

  • Redondo5000

    For me it is the smell of asphalt and weeds… it signals road trip through these United States.  Rain enhances it (and the smell of cattail takes it up and over the top.)  Holiday road…

  • Cynthia

    The smell of cut grass at twilight

  • Debbi

    Kids with lemonade stands, street musicians playing on the corners and the outdoor festivals that bring out community together.

  • http://www.heallovebe.wordpress.com/ Jamie Falahee

    Yes!  The first signs of spring: flowers blooming and trees coming back to life!

  • Kim Dalmaijer

    When I see the falling leaves in Autumn it is a solemn time of year. I think about those precious dying leaves and all the years ago when my mother passed on from cancer. The crunch of leaves, the acrid and earthy smell of rotting leaves under foot and in ditches reminds me this life is ever-changing.

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