It is still summertime. We don’t want it to ever end. It is still hot. We’re ready for this to be over. It is probably best to ignore these contradictions and settle down in the shade with a cool drink and a friend. It is August. So let’s just enjoy it for what it is.
It’s Easy, Busy and Odd
This is the month to take it easy. We launched vacations, survived the trips and returned home exhausted, but satisfied. Although the yards still need tending, routine lawn maintenance is winding down.
Many of us are prepping back-to-school supplies. Most of us are doing it for the kids. Some of us are doing it for ourselves. August is the new September in countless households across the country.
Our choices for celebrity birthdays this month pose an odd mix. Who’s ready to light the candles for Herman Melville, Barack Obama and Hulk Hogan?
It Has Its Surprises
If you think we’re feeling a little languid about August, prepare to be surprised. The eighth month on the calendar hosts some very special dates worth commemorating and we are not talking about celebrity birthdays.
For example, on August 7th, we observe National Lighthouse Day which celebrates a wonderfully unique blend of architectural form and function. These coastal towers conjure up beautiful visions of romance and the high seas.
Enjoy rescuing friends hopelessly glued to their phone screens? Bring them back to reality with a little insider knowledge. Just casually share your insights about the 1990 origins of digital communication and gracefully admit that you know what you know because you observe World Wide Web Day, celebrated annually on August 1st.
If you appreciate the joy that comes from a perfect wine and cheese pairing, consider this quirky match made in holiday heaven – Garage Sale Day and Underwear Day. One is very public and so much fun. The other is more personal and equally entertaining in its own private way. That balance has to make you smile, and it only happens in August.
Sometimes we look up at clear, blue skies and daydream about flying away. It is a spiritual yearning we all experience. If you have never flown paper airplanes on National Aviation Day, August is the month to join in on this uplifting tradition.
It’s a Wonderful Page-Turner
One more reason to appreciate this month isn’t a celebratory date on the calendar. It is the calendar page. We get to turn it. We get to say goodbye to summer. That doesn’t make August a closing kind of month. Instead, it is a month that quietly opens to a welcome change of season.
I look forward to that passage and hope you continue to join me on my journeys here at HolidayDispatch.