Hey, Summer!
“Summering is a year-round activity.”
I got a canvas tote bag as a freebie. It’s pretty much what you would expect of a free canvas tote—unstructured, thin, practical. On the inside it has two shallow side pockets that can hold water bottles (or wine bottles) and on the front is written “Hey, Summer!”
It is my favorite bag. Ever. And especially right now.
I am about to launch a summer workshop offer called “Camp Summer.” In this workshop, participants bring an item that they own which speaks to the summer they hope to have—they don’t have to know why it speaks to them, just that it does—an orange straw hat or a floral skirt. Plane tickets, a favorite book, beach shoes. I lead the “Campers” through exercises to help them discover the metaphors inherent in these items that speak to the summer they want to have.
We unpack our symbol and find its messages.
Last year, I picked an orange straw sun hat because I wanted to have a casual but fun and safe summer—”Down-home Sun in the Uptown City.” (Click here to see how that worked for me.)
I learned a few things from last year’s Camp Summer, especially that I need a more flexible metaphor.
I hope my summer is a sturdy but unstructured, open-top, tote bag.
My “Hey, Summer” tote reminds me to keep my summer free and open. Relaxed and unstructured, but not shapeless. Well-supplied yet easy to carry. Simple. Near. Light.
My summer may be nothing special, but it is everything I need.
My “Hey, Summer” tote reminds me that it, like the magician’s hat, only looks empty.
