The Unbearable Lightness

Okay, it’s not at all unbearable, this lighter later time of year. It’s just that this year summer has come creeping in on cat feet, so I hardly noticed the days getting longer. This year I’ve found it suddenly getting late before I had any idea it was happening—dark when I thought it was still early.

The summer solstice is in a few days, but—being so far south—our summer days don’t actually start shortening until the New Year. In parts of the southern South Island, it stays light quite late and until well into summer. When I was a kid, I was allowed to stay out “until the streetlights come on.” I wonder what rules Kiwi kids have.

Staying light well into the evening is a good thing for Christmas shopping. But it’s also a good thing for those of us who just love summer days.