I hear insects buzzing, the sound of a summer day for me ever since I was little.

When I was a kid, I walked everywhere. In the summer the roads shimmered when I walked on a really hot day. I knew it was a mirage caused by the heat, but I still found it a bit mystifying. The shimmer always stayed the same distance away from me in front of where I was walking. It made me think of the desert and of water which wasn’t there.

Sidewalks were so hot they’d burn my bare feet. I’d do that silly dance every one does of quickly raising one foot then the other ahing out loud in pain the whole time. The grass was immediate relief, cool and lush.

Drinking water from the gushing hose was an easy way to feel a bit cooler. The water ran fast and hard. The front of my blouse always got wet. It didn’t matter because the sun dried it quickly.

My mother always yelled when we looked into the fridge for what she thought was too long a time. “Close the door. Do you want everything to melt?” She never understood that looking was the best way to find what you didn’t know you craved on a hot day until you saw it. Always in the fridge was the aluminum pitcher filled with Zarex, usually orange. Everyone liked orange. My favorite was cherry, but I bowed to the orange contingent.

My mother had aluminum glasses to match the blue aluminum pitcher. They were the best for cold drinks because you could feel the coolness through the aluminum to your hand. Ice cubes were too difficult to get from the trays. You had to pull a lever to release the cubes and most times the lever had also frozen. Waiting for the water to get hot then putting the tray under the faucet was the only way to loosen the lever. All of it was far too much work for a few ice cubes.

Today is a wonderful summer day with a breeze and a sunny blue sky.