Bye-Bye, Brat Summer

Beads of sweat, blessings ... BRAT.

“Is it fall yet?”

Hearing that in July is particularly annoying.

I’m sorry, I’m too busy enjoying my Brat Summer™ to care about your intolerance for the most action-packed time of year. I’m making art with my friends and meeting new people. I feel young.¹

There’s plenty to hate in life, duh, but being a hater is so NOT ‘brat.’ Honestly, I’ve had to leave haterade in the past in order to survive. It ain’t replenishing.

I get it. You want to rush past your discomfort. But why not just have fun?

All I want is to enjoy the present moment without a stark reminder of how fleeting life is.

Trust me, time requires no commentary from us in the peanut gallery. Fall will be here in the blink of an eye—suddenly, the holidays. Then, another year will be gone.

And how many years do I get in this life?

That knowledge is above my pay grade. Truthfully, I’m in no rush to find out. So, in the meantime, I’d rather just appreciate summer and its electric energy.

Perhaps it’s an unpopular opinion, but I’ve always preferred hot weather to cold.

The days are long, the nights warm, and yes, it feels a bit intense at times. But I love feeling so alive. Sometimes, I sweat like I’m at a rave for no good reason, but mostly, I feel extremely blessed to live in a time when air conditioning exists.

Winter, on the other hand, makes me feel cold and dead, like I’m all alone, viewing the world behind glass, while jolly music gaslights me into draining my bank account to desperately feel a sense of joy and warmth once more—

Yes, right, let’s exist here and now. In August. WARMTH.

Well, this year, I’ve discovered August’s true purpose…

I enjoyed the heat this summer, ignoring the silly complaints and obvious observations of those around me. I remained mostly indoors, blissfully delusional until about three days into August when I got into my car and the temperature registered at 107°.

That three-digit number on the screen taunted me, as if the swamp ass immediately forming in my panties² wasn’t confrontational enough.

August turned the summer heat from demure and mindful, hehe, to SHUT THE F*CK UP ALREADY.

August is here to bear-hug us with humidity and put the BRAT in brat summer.

August’s job, I’ve realized, is to get us excited for fall.

My summer nights may not have been as epic as Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta’s by any means, but I certainly had a nice time. It was cute!

Now? I’m done. Over it.

I’m ready for autumn, okay? Are you happy now?

Yeah, fall is actually the greatest time of the year. I never said it wasn’t.

There’s a major energy shift during fall that doesn’t occur in any other season. You see, in numerology,³ September ends the year, and October begins the new one.

Once I learned that information, I couldn’t deny its resonance. Every year during fall, I truly do feel a new leaf is turned.

As we indulge in pumpkin-flavored goodies and the temperature drops, there’s peace in the air. We suddenly start making sense of the lessons learned this past year while turning the page on a new chapter in our very own book…

It’s an exciting time.

You see, I truly do find the fun in each part of the year. But all things in moderation.

I don’t want to live in spooky season all year or sing Christmas carols in July. Everything has its time in the sun, and that’s what makes it special.

Just as sunshine can’t be appreciated without cloudy days, fall’s temperature drop wouldn’t be significant without August’s oppressive heat.

In every waking moment, there’s something to obsess over—love or hate.

For some, summer can’t end quickly enough. Others daydream of warmth during the winter season. But all of us rely on fun to get through.

While I’m not particularly jazzed about the holiday season, I thank God we at least have food-fueled festivities to distract from the frigid air.

Coming back to here and now, I am grateful I get to enjoy each moment of fall beforehand. Brat summer may be drawing to a close, but we will remain brat for at LEAST the rest of 2024.

I don’t know how much time I have here on earth. So, despite each season’s bratty challenges, I take it all as a blessing.

1. I am young. So it’s especially nice when I feel it.

2. I don’t actually wear panties, but compression briefs from Gap that they unfortunately do not make anymore.

3. Numerology is the belief in the mystical significance of numbers and their influence on human life and events.