Endless days of a Greek summer

A beautiful day today – mid 80’s – clear blue sky – a slight breeze.  It’s beautiful to sit outside for a change.  This weather reminds me of Greece. When I look at the willow tree which covers most of my back yard, I imagine that the Aegean Sea is behind it; and when the wind picks up, I close my eyes and see the waves hitting the pebbled shore, the small white caps crashing into one another. I miss vacationing in Greece this summer. I really miss it. There are so many things to do there.  If the house feels that it’s suffocating you, you can go for a walk, visit a church, walk on the boardwalk, sit at a café for hours and nurse an iced coffee. Go to the beach, spend the day in the water, lie under the hot, scorching sun, or under a beach umbrella. Watch the jet skis, leisure boats and fishing boats come and go. Watch the young children play in the water, running in and out, the fun they have splashing each other. Or lie down on the sand, close your eyes, and listen. Listen to the sounds around you. Even with your eyes closed you can recognize the sounds, you can hear the heat simmering, the birds fluttering their wings inside the tree branches, taking cover from the heat. Listen to the cicadas that never stop. Sometimes, their sound is so strong that you don’t hear anything else around you. You don’t see them; even with your eyes open you can’t, because they are hidden in the trees, the evergreens, the acacia trees, the willows, the walnut trees. Then someone, a young child, kicks some sand on you while he runs into the water. You open up your eyes and dust yourself off. Or if the sand is wet and can’t dust it off, you decide to go in the water and in the process cool yourself off too. The water feels cool on your hot skin. You swim a few strokes, but it also feels good to stand in there, or float. You can see the bottom. The water is so clear, you see the minnows swim between your legs; sometimes you see a school of them. If you kick your legs they’ll swim away breaking the school and gather again a few inches away from you. Some of the stones in the water are slippery. You walk carefully, so you won’t slip and end up plunging into the water. But if that happens it feels good. Your body temperature drops. It’s not as hot as it was before you got in. You feel refreshed, rejuvenated, and finally you decide to get out of the water, and lie in the sun to dry off. An hour or so later you repeat the process. And the day goes by. It ends. You spent a day at the beach, you did something you enjoy. It’s time to go home. Take a shower, eat, rest. Repeat, again tomorrow.  Because you know that tomorrow will be as beautiful, hot and sunny as it was today. You’ll have endless days like this; endless days of a Greek summer. article and pictures by Mary Axiotis