All in all, this has been a pretty good summer. Despite a tough start (when it rained every weekend), the weather has been as close to perfect as we could expect for summer activities — and the weatherman is predicting continued dry and seasonably-warm weather for the coming two weeks.
The mornings along our coastline have been pleasantly placid for those of us who row on the ocean (we belong to a rowing club on the South Shore that ventures up and down the coast and as far out as Minots Light), while the breezes typically have been picking up in the afternoon for the sailors.
Our vegetable and flower garden — which is entirely contained in large pots on the deck of our condo — once again has been superb. We’ve had more tomatoes than we know what to do — and nothing beats the pop in our mouths of fresh-picked tomatoes in the summer (as opposed to those tasteless tomatoes that we have to settle for in grocery stores in the winter months).
However, all good things must come to an end, and so too it is with summer. The days now are noticeably shorter, and with the sunset inching southward each day, the shadows cast in the late afternoon and early evening are far different than they were in June and July.
The blooms of the purple loosestrife (though it is an invasive species, we have to admit it is quite striking with its spiky purple flowers) are another harbinger of the back nine of summer. So too, are the tips of the marsh grass, which a few weeks ago were verdant green, but which now are golden-yellow, yet another indication of the inevitable downward trajectory of the summer of 2025.
So sadly, with just three weeks to go until Labor Day (which occurs very early this year on September 1), yet another summer season is winding down.
But for those of us who treasure the hot and humid summer months, we’re heartened by this realization: Memorial Day, 2026, is just nine months away!