Summer Rules, Winter Drools

By Sophia Gorbounov

Source: wideopeneats.com

Whenever I tell someone that summer is my favourite season, the first thing they do is point out where I was born, Canada, and where my family is from, Russia. I know my chilly background suggests that I should be fine with winter, that I should be wearing shorts in eight degree weather and complaining about the heat when the temperature reaches double digits. But I was born in June, when summer finally starts to come back and re-enter our lives like a long-lost love.

As a student, I think one of the greatest appeals of summer is the lack of school. In fact, I spent a serious amount of time in my life wanting to become a teacher, just so I could savour those warm days. There is something so completely lethargic about it. Like I’m slowly melting in the heat of direct sunlight, that brings about a clarity in my mind. Having no deadlines, no mandatory classes, cliche as it may sound, is euphoric, and it reminds me that stress is not a constant in my life, that I am allowed to breathe once in a while. I know I am lucky to afford myself four months of total bliss, and that many have to find work or study in the summer, but I digress. Having time to do something because I want to, not because it needs to be done in three days, reinvigorates me and reminds me of my interests.

Many will point to the overwhelming feeling of stickiness that one feels in the summer. Melting ice cream, scorching humid days where all your clothing clings in-

stantly, peeling your thighs off plastic and leather chairs. I know some bring up that in winter, you can always add another layer , as opposed to summer, where you can only take off so much without being in some minor-to-serious legal trouble. Nonetheless, I stand by the notion that summer is superior, and let me explain why.

While it is true that summer comes with the unfortunate con of perma-sticky, the world is more vibrant, more alive, and one soon forgets about the moist feelings. Late flowers are blooming, trees are at their greenest. Everyone brings out their brightly coloured clothing, no longer smothered in layers and layers of fleece, down jackets, and ballooning puffers. The atmosphere is cheery, everybody’s style a little more unique, and accessories are on full display, with necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and shiny rings glinting in the sunlight.

I am also of the opinion that the best foods arise in the summer months. Late May arrives and suddenly every grocery store is selling watermelons out of those big Source: pinterest cardboard boxes. Berries go on sale as they grow in heaps around the world, the demand barely keeping up with the sheer size of the supply. Vegetables are more savoury, fruits juicier and sweeter. Summer is no doubt a friend to the tastebuds.

Of course, this discussion would be incomplete without considering a more modern criterion: vibes. Very vague and all-encompassing, it is without a doubt in my mind that summer, at least summer in Montreal, emits the strongest and most positive vibes of any season. Maybe this is just in my experience, but everyone I know is happier in the summer. Everyone laughs more, they’re filled with energy and a new outlook on life that I always see fade away in the colder months.

This of course is not meant to dismiss lovers of the cold, those who enjoy bundling up and sitting on the couch reading a book and drinking some piping hot tea. Yet for me, summer is a clear winner. If I had the chance, I would want summer forever, so I can feel as whole and complete, as I do from May to August, all year round. Give me bees and sweaty backs, if it means I can genuinely relish in just being alive. ♦