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“Summer always overstays its welcome by about a month,” my colleague Elizabeth Bruenig wrote last week. “After the Fourth of July, which has its charms, nothing but a stretch of relentless heat lies ahead, reaching toward Labor Day, and I begin to yearn for fall.” That yearning is reflected in American consumer culture: “By mid-August, grocery stores are stocking their shelves with autumnal goods—pumpkin-pie Pop-Tarts, cinnamon-maple Frosted Flakes, pumpkin-spice cinnamon rolls in pressurized cardboard tubes.”
This early push to transition into fall can make us lose sight of what’s so special about the season we’re in now. For Bruenig, it’s accompanying her children on adventures and watching them play freely. For others, it might be spending more time with loved ones, travelling, or enjoying the simple pleasure of ice cream (although it is my personal belief that ice cream has no seasonal limits). Today’s newsletter explores how to make the most of the end of summer—without putting too much pressure on yourself to do it perfectly.
If Only This Could Last Forever
By Elizabeth Bruenig
Summer is the worst season of all, and also the most beautiful.
An Easy Summer Project Worth Doing
By Elaine Godfrey
Finding small moments of joy can make every day feel—at least a little—like vacation. (From 2025)
You Can Do Leisure Better, Seriously
By Arthur C. Brooks
If you think of personal time only as “not work,” you could be missing out on truly enriching experiences. (From 2025)
Still Curious?
- Go for a walk: In 2021, Arthur C. Brooks recounted what he learned about transcendence from a very boring 100-mile trek.
- The new parent trap: At summer camp, the kids may be far from home, but technology is keeping many moms and dads tethered to them—and anxious, Russell Shaw writes.
Other Diversions
- The dystopia of modern singlehood
- Our last WiFi-less refuge is gone.
- The elite college students who can’t read books
PS
I recently asked readers to share a photo of something that sparks their sense of awe in the world. “Last night I couldn’t sleep and sat on the front porch in the dark, surprised to hear rain,” Bliss G. wrote last month. “This morning, no sign of the rain but this one, glorious drop, which even in the breeze, wouldn’t disappear.”
I’ll continue to feature your responses in the coming weeks.
— Isabel
The post What the Last Weeks of Summer Can Offer appeared first on The Atlantic.
