This will be a halcyon day of summer.

I sit on my porch, twirling my hair into a knot, as the afternoon sun beats down on the wooden deck. I have a cup of needlessly hot coffee, and my dogs languidly laze in the long grass. The dog days of summer? This is it.

It’s another day of work avoidance, but such a beautiful afternoon.

Wildflowers blow in the breeze in abundance. I smell their scent as the gentle wind carries a hot, fragrant mixture of flowers, cut grass and the distant water. I’m startled as a couple of green leaves spiral towards me from the trees above. An early warning that the season will change, and a different beauty will emerge.

My eldest dog pants beside me. I don’t sense it’s from the heat; she’s enjoying this moment as much as I am. She’s tasting the scented air, and feeling the peaceful, summer warmth envelop both of us. The younger two are feeble in their never-ending quest to chew every stick and branch that has fallen on the land. They half-heartedly growl and play-fight over whatever is in reach.

As I touch the softness of my dog’s black fur, I reflect on the softness I feel in my soul. For a brief moment, the stress has loosened its grip, and anxiety melted in the comforting sun. I am reborn. I’m connected to every fiber of the universe. I breathe the fresh, new air into my lungs and feel its flow through my entire system. Every inhalation releases and relaxes a little bit more. Every exhalation affirms my presence. This is real. This is happening.

Maybe it’s ok to be where I am right now. Sitting on this hard step as the sun gently shines then fades on my being, as every breath of breeze sways the leafy trees above. No matter how often I choose the shadows, the light always finds me.