This is for all of the dads (and perhaps moms too), who feel the summer blues during the summer from having school-aged kids, and a quiet house. For those in this boat, you already know exactly what I am talking about. And for those who have no idea, stick with it, there will be value for you.
But let me set this up for you to understand.
I wake up in the morning on a typical June day… the sun comes up early, the birds are singing, the world is alive… except for my house. Over the last five + years it has been the same thing. Kids asleep, wife asleep, everybody wiped out from a late night the night before… whether it was with friends, or family, or both… everybody needs to catch up on sleep.
So I would get up, get ready, let the dogs out, and head out into the world without a peep from the family. This has been what I would call the summer blues. Feeling a little empty inside every morning… and this is WITH my morning ritual fully intact (on my knees first thing, saying Thank You God, until I have exhausted just about everything in my repertoire to be thankful for, this is an anti-depression ritual for sure).
Summer blues… driving into work feeling lonely, feeling the absence of the lively morning at home, missing the hustle and bustle of a school day with kids running around screaming about who moved their book, or did you see my backpack, or who ate the last piece pf turkey bacon… those moments of activity replaced by silence.
It reminds me a bit of the time after my last dog passed. He was the one who followed me into the bathroom, and watched me get ready, and followed me downstairs to hang out. He was a solution to the quiet mornings, gave me that little bit of connection with someone/something before heading into the day. It was so very empty once he passed. The other dog never gets up, sleeps hours after we wake up… lazy.
But if you have ever suffered through a loss. A loss of somebody, something, or just some activity, you might have felt this pang of loneliness or emptiness. I have read a number of articles over the years that discuss the decline of the brain activity during a time of loss, and ultimately how a very short term depression can result in long term depressive states, and a loss of function to go with it. I think we can all attest to the reality of that in the short term, and I would hope we can be aggressive in combatting that for the long term.
The summer blues is simply a title that resonates with me, but for you, no matter what the cause, if you have the BLUES, then you should put it under a microscope, with intensity towards fixing it. Don’t ignore mourning, or grieving… go through the process, but understand that the process has an end to it. There is a point at which you should be ready to move on.
For me and my small issue of summer blues, I have already begun fixing it. I woke my daughter Ansley early this morning and brought her with me to work. What a blessing, to have my daughter in the car on the way in, and to have her at the office, she even cleaned… and later we ran a loop at Rope Mill Trail during lunch… what a day!
Be Well and Be Blessed!