Unstuck

Everyone gets stuck sometimes. Stuck in ruts, stuck in habits, stuck in circular thoughts and indecision. I’ve been stuck in summer. Stuck in short-sleeves, stuck in the house, stuck in cold drinks and sweat and flipflops. When you’re stuck in a writing rut, you can unstick yourself with goal-setting or creative prompts. When you’re stuck in a bad mood, a phone call from a friend or a cuddle with a cat can often do the trick. But when you’re stuck in summer, you don’t have many options. You watch the calendar turn, ticking away the days and weeks and milestones that mean nothing when the temperature refuses to drop. Who cares about the first day of fall if it’s still 95 degrees outside? How can you celebrate the coming of October when it wafts in like a hot breath on your neck? You put pumpkins on your porch, wear skeleton t-shirts over your shorts, and fantasize about your favorite autumn treats, but even the thought of hot chocolate makes you feel feverish. Summer in Texas is a seasonal prison sentence, and this year we were denied parole.

Until today.

Fall blew in through my open window last night, sending me snuggling under a pile of blankets and filling my house with a crispness it hasn’t felt in months. I put on jeans, slipped my feet into warm socks, and pulled a hoodie over my head before going outside to feed the animals, who were romping in the morning’s chill, kicking up their heels and savoring the sudden change. I smiled as I wrapped my hands around my coffee mug and let the steam warm my cold nose.

This is not a tease, not just another single day’s respite. I feel a shift. The wind liberated leaves from trees and detached decorations from my yard, but that’s not all it freed. The cold front loosened summer’s hold on us. We’re all coming unstuck.

Fall has arrived, finally. I welcome it with open doors and open arms.