Summer's End

Is it?

Ever since last week it's been raining here in Japan. Not that I can vouch for the whole country, but Tokyo and Saitama are drenched, the air has cooled considerably, and the sun has yet to make its appearance (which I hope is soon, my clothes are getting funky).

But that is not to say that I dislike it. Oh yes I do! Very much so!

One of the things that has attracted me to this country is the climate, or rather, the seasons. For back home we only had one: Summer... all year round. So when I stepped out of the plane last June and was engulfed in the cool breeze of Spring, my heart flew and left extreme bliss at its place.

So you see, I very much adore the word 涼しい (suzushii) for it connotes the promise of the end of sweaty arms/pits/scalp/neck (pretty much anything with skin) and the beginning of laughter and smiles. Of course, I haven't the foggiest concerning Winter, so don't bother. I reason that it's better to let it sink in that sometimes hot is good, rather than burden me with life experiences of freezing winter which I totally can't relate to... yet.

Although it was kinda weird to hear cicadas and crickets singing on a cool, overcast day, because I always associate them with cloudless blue skies and school kids doing sports at the boiling point of noon.

So I guess it really is still summer; with just a couple of thunder clouds for intermission.