Summer in Austin

summer in Austin
Originally uploaded by Peg Syverson.

Or is it Hawaii? The rains have turned Austin into a tropical paradise, hot, humid, and resplendent with flowers. We are indulged with color, fragrance, and the kind of torpor that makes it harder and harder to go fast and try to do too many things at once. We are compelled to slow down, breath more deeply, look more closely, savor the moment, until finally, we just stop, immersed in timeless, jaw-dropping beauty. Sit on the stoop with an iced tea and watch the cats in the grass. Hold a baby for a minute or an hour or an eternity and gaze into those wide lucid eyes. Eat an enormous ice cream cone as big as your head. Let us be respectfully reminded: life and death are of supreme importance. Time swiftly passes by, and with it our only chance. Each of us must strive to awaken. Be aware! Do not squander our life!