Is It As Uncomfortable As It Seems?
Take Pen to Paper: Edition 95
Hi Friends!
I can’t help but wonder why we complain now about the things we used to tolerate.
In this newsletter:
Sure, it’s hot, but remember when…
Are my memories accurate?
What will the next generation say?
Beating the Heat
By that heading, I mean getting up early enough to walk before it’s unbearably hot and humid.
I’ve never been one to jump out of bed ready to go. I’m typically prompted by one of two things: my dog, whose internal clock never needs winding, or knowing that if I don’t get going, I will suffer on my two-mile morning walk.
Over the course of my many years, when did I start struggling with heat and humidity? Most of my life I spent in the deep South, deeper than where I live now. I remember living with no air conditioning, except for maybe one room. As kids, we played outside and drank from the yard hose. (What’s an insulated cup?)
We played hard all day, usually outside. That’s where our mother shooed us. She had things to do, and having us underfoot wasn’t going to work. Luckily, we wanted to be outside with our friends, roaming the neighborhood.
Now, after my hour-long walk in the morning, I count the steps to my air-conditioned house for a cool drink. When did I change?
My granddaughter wants to go out to play while I encourage her to craft, read, or build—anything indoors. When did I get so spoiled by the luxury and comfort of air conditioning? Am I spoiling her?
Am I Romanticizing the Old Days?
No matter your situation, don’t you adjust if you put effort into it?
In my first year in college in New Orleans, Louisiana, I lived in a dorm with no air-conditioning. I was actually excited to live in one of the oldest buildings on campus. It was historic, and it had stories. I love stories! What I didn’t consider was the heat and humidity.
Even though I was used to air conditioning by this time, I acclimated to the environment. We used a box fan in our dorm window, took multiple showers a day, and sometimes just lay on the bed sweating with the fan blowing on us. If we wanted to cool off, we went to the library or the student center. It’s a matter of what you get used to.
I did the same when I began teaching in Biloxi, Mississippi five years later. We depended on the transom windows above the hall doors, open windows, and ceiling fans.
In both situations, there was something about belonging to a group of people who successfully lived or worked in a less-than-ideal environment. We managed to survive and live to tell the tale! Of course, that ignores the fact that many others had done the same before us.
I’m sure we complained about the heat, although I don’t remember that specifically. Maybe I’m romanticizing those times because they were special times I will never recapture.
What Will My Children Say They Survived?
I use the word survive lightly. I haven’t described true danger or hardship.
Of course, there are tragedies and devastations that we, as individuals, survive. There are dangers and hardships much worse than what I have described. Each person’s experiences are relative.
With that clarification, I wonder what my children will talk about when they are my age. Will they have minor hardships to reminisce about - camps, optional school projects, sports teams, afterschool activities?
As parents, we often talk them into things that, if left to their thinking, they may not eagerly agree to, like my boys sharing a bedroom for five to six years when they really didn’t have to. They are four years apart in age. That’s an age gap wide enough to make a difference.
Did I ask them if they wanted to? Did they like sharing a room? Or was I just convincing in my argument?
This weekend my daughter-in-law told me they are thinking about letting my granddaughters share a bedroom. They have the same age difference as my boys. My son even told her how he shared a room with his brother.
Does he remember it as a positive experience? Or is he fondly remembering days gone by?
7 Days, 7 Thoughts on Gratitude and Good:
I’m grateful for all my past experiences, comfortable or not.
It’s a good thing not to complain about something you can’t change. Instead of talking about the heat outside, talk about your plans for staying cool.
I found this newsletter of Tom Kuegler’s an interesting read. Are we letting our comfort kill our happiness?
A quote: “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” -Helen Keller.
Some of these tips on how to beat the heat may surprise you.
Why do we romanticize the past? This article explains it has something to do with psychology.
Because my dog, Arlo, was featured this week, I thought you might enjoy a story I wrote about how he came to us. The story was written before we became a one-dog family.
Thank you for reading. This week, give some thought to how you share your feelings about discomfort. Do you complain or consider solutions?
Until next time,
💚
Susan
How do you stay comfortable with the weather is not to your liking? Leave a comment and tell me about it.
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Our bodies do acclimate (and disacclimate) to the heat, and it makes sense that as we get older and more indoor-bound, we lose that acclimation. There are times when I have to push myself to go outside and exercise or do yard work, but I'm almost always glad I did.
But some of the discomfort is real - summers are also getting hotter. I feel a bit sad that my children are growing up in a hotter world than the one I grew up in; heat that can chase even kids inside, more anxiety for us parents about their health and safety, and some days that are truly too hot to safely spend time outside.
Your memories about the heat and growing up running around outside and being without AC brought a lot of memories back to me ;)