As I sit on my porch enjoying what is, probably, the last warm sun of this year, I remember the very first one. A Spring afternoon, after the kids got home from the bus stop, my dear friend and I sat on this very same spot to watch them play and could for the first time wear shorts. The following morning we bragged about red shoulders, the very first sign of the Summer that was to come.
Today I feel a need to say goodbye to Summer. It's gone... Living in Virginia for these two years I appreciate so much the four seasons, that this last warm touch on my skin takes an emotional meaning I could never understand when living in tropical Brazil.
As I write, my husband plays soccer with our neighbor on the cul de sac. Romeo starts his car wash business with his best buddy and I can hear the sound of the vacuum and their cheerful chatting about prices and how much they should give to charity.
"Mom, you have a family's discount whenever you want us to wash your car"
A neighbor family packs for their new home, just as a new family moves in to another house, and I can't help feeling the power of cicles that come with this simple moment of sitting outside.
Irma is headed to Florida, and it amazes me how the country braces as a whole to an event that will take place in a tiny portion of the land. The "United" states are actually pretty good at feeling unity and compassion. And even better at helping and making room for opportunities...
Maybe it's the warmth of this last Fall sunset, maybe it's the sad antecipation for our people in harms way, (yes, our people. Patriotism lies in more places than just a citizenship paper...) but my heart is full of gratitude... I'm happy for the awesome friends we have made on this journey, for the amazing friends we have kept, for the feeling of unity that this major storm is bringing on a 9/11 weekend, and for the sense of utterly belonging. I feel the gratitude of knowing my kids will grow up being sure that if they work hard good things can happen to them, and that from their hard work comes amazing chances of helping others. Giving 2 dollars from a car wash is just the beginning... It's the opening your house for those who ran out of gas, it's sheltering and rescuing lost pets, it's taking care of people in need and reaching out for those close to us who need a smile or a hug.
And more than all of that, I feel immense gratitude for the last warm sunset of the year. It tells me Fall is coming, pumpkin latte is on Starbucks, orange and red will be the colors on our way, boots and jackets will be out of the closet, and more than anything, it shows me that I will be longing for the first warm Spring sun, sitting on my porch with my loving friend, watching our kids working and our husbands playing...
And we'll do that again, and again, and again....
"This is my little paradise"
Frank "Duck" Wright, Myrtle Beach, Summer of 2017
