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My lovely readers,
I appreciate this will not feel like an urgent topic to most of you, but I have to say something. I am here to defend the month of August, and take an official stand against, what feels like, the Entire World, who hate this month.
The first inkling I had that most people do not love August as much as I do came early in life. Back when I was a kid (aka the 90s and early 2000’s) your parents would buy literal paper calendars every year— you know— to tell the time. (Even as I type this, it feels adorably antique considering we didn’t really have other options unless you wanted to “power up” the family PC, which of course felt like overkill to establish: “today is Wednesday.”)
My sister Micaela and I would go through the pictures for each month, and engage in a little friendly competition over whose birth month had the best picture. She always won. Her birthday is in June. The first month of summer! School is out! People are throwing off the shackles of their routines to embrace long days, afternoons by the pool, and waking up to the sound of lawn mowers. The pictures for June were always vibrant, green, and jolly. Even the animal-based calendars favored June with adorable golden retriever puppies, while August always featured something random like a pair of flamingos at sunset— the obviously less-cool option when you’re ten.
This is how I began to catch the vibe that people hate August. I think we can all agree you don’t use flamingos to decorate something unless you actually hate it.
It seems by the time August rolls around, most people are ready to wrap this show up. They’re over-hot, parents are itching to send their kids back to school, all vacations have been taken, it’s time to settle down and get real. The desire in the air for sweaters and pumpkin spice lattes is so strong it’s like a collective sexual frustration.
People get horny for the fall in August, and it ruins it for everyone.
I get unreasonably annoyed when people start pre-gaming for autumn on August 6th. The Autumn Stans are constantly trying to out-do one another by being the first one to mention their yearning for chunky knit sweaters. WE GET IT KATIE, YOU LOVE A LAYER— WHO DOESN’T?
Liking fall is not a personality. Or if it is, it’s not a very interesting one.
Anyway, this is my thesis on why people should stop being such babies around the month of August and recognize it for the Very Important Month that it is.
August is the slow,
gentle month
that stretches
out the longest
across the span
of a year.
It yawns and lingers on
with the light in its palms.
— Victoria Erikson
August is NOT the “Sunday Scaries” of the Year
August is a month of abundance and bounty. There is an air that demands a languid self-reflection. The Sunday Scaries isn’t quite right, but I understand what people mean when they say that. For me August is an invitation to wake late, drink slowly, and take stock before entering th next season. When I’m feeling generous, I understand why the “in-betweenness” of August could cause unease. There’s nothing like a final destination to make you feel like you’re doing the thing. (Although, I’d argue final destinations as a concept in general are one of life’s more successful marketing tricks!)
August really IS a month of transition, and to enjoy this month, you have to sit with it, not wish it away, or close your eyes and pretend it doesn’t exist. Personally, I love undefined things because they’re some of the last few playgrounds for original thought we’re afforded anymore. When everything fun is memed into an early grave, spaces that defy categorization are sacred! Enter: August.
The Weather
It’s true that some of the most unbearably hot days of the year usually go down in August, but it’s balanced out by some of the most gorgeous mornings and evenings. In the other summer months the earth is warming up, whereas in August it’s beginning its journey towards hibernation. The result is luscious mornings where the air is thick with the smell of vibrant life and the early sweetness of decay. The trees are still green though, butterflies (SO many butterflies!) float about, you can catch a pretty lovely tan in five minutes flat. And then again in the evening, when the sun goes down, it leaves behind pure essence of the Perfect Summer Night. You’re not sweating bullets at 9pm, you’re luxuriating. You’re watching the tail end of the firefly season, you’re drinking chilled wine and reveling in your freshly solar-charged skin.
August really is when summer nights reach their crescendo, but most people are too busy wishing them away to enjoy what’s happening.
The Food
If you’re a gardener you know what I’m talking about. Tomato Girl Summer could not exist without the month of August. Heirloom tomatoes— Instagram Princesses— especially need August to ripen.
Zucchini has no chill during August, herbs are bursting, melons, and figs, and corn, and raspberries, and blackberries abound! If you like food at all, you have to appreciate what August has to offer— both in flavor and abundance! In my experience, the Venn diagram of people who obsess over fall and the people most likely to love a farmer’s market or farm stand have a lot of overlap. And yet if you wish away August, you are missing the peak month of summer produce! August is for gathering and shaking your head in laughing disbelief at the bounty. It’s for canning, and pickling, and letting juice run down your chin.
Summer declines and roses have grown rare,
But cottage crofts are gay with hollyhocks,
And in old garden walks you breathe an air
Fragrant of pinks and August-smelling stocks.
—John Todhunter (1839-1916)
Stars
August is a wonderful month to look at the night sky. Every year the Perseid Meteor shower takes place from the end of July to the middle of August. I don’t know much about stars if I’m honest, but knowing there’s annual meteor shower you can count on every year in August feels something akin to magic.
Ways to make the most of August
Read outside. On the days that aren’t as hot, I love to take my book out to the porch. Something about the cooling breeze, the soundtrack of the year’s last cicadas, and the floating cotton clouds above my head makes me feel drunk on life.
Eat as many dinners outside as you can, ask for the table on the patio, bring your sun hat and sunglasses. Soon enough you will miss the feeling of the sun’s rays on your skin.
Make things with tomatoes. Make things with peaches. Make things with zucchini. Eat watermelon every day. Four foods that taste distinctly worse when they’re not in season. Figs! Don’t forget figs!
Go on a hike. Drive yourself out of town, let your shoulders be free, take a stroll under some trees, and notice how everything feels like it’s singing it’s final chorus before beginning its long sleep for the year.
If you like to run, go out after the heat of the day when the sun is setting. Bring a friend if you don’t feel safe running after dark. There’s nothing more “summer” to me than going on an evening run.
Steal a wild swim before the water is too cold. Find a stream, a river, a lake, a swimming hole and baptize yourself in summer’s glory.
Do something that feels decadent to you. It doesn’t have to cost money. Pick a day to sleep in till noon, drink of bottle of wine on your own one night, read an entire book in one sitting, whatever it is, let yourself experience something pleasurable without guilt.
I’m sure I’ll think of more after I’ve hit publish on this piece.
August reading list
These are books that feel like “August” to me, without much rhyme or reason other than pure vibe.
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett— A mother recounts the summer of her first love for her three grown daughters as they rush to harvest the cherries from the family orchard during the 2020 quarantine. It’s a story about living a full and lusty life. It’s about romance, and family, and the summers that change the course of our lives.
The Sicilian Inheritance by Jo Piazza— Struggling under a deep sense of her own personal failure after a divorce and folding on her business, Sara is sent to Sicily after her Aunt Rosie’s death to claim the deed on a valuable parcel of family land. What awaits for her in Sicily besides wine and pasta and ocean swims, is a story of grit, love, and a family mystery. Sara finds herself solving a decades old family murder, and ultimately uncovering the everyday heroism of the women in her family.
The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Nova Bailey— A nonfiction, short account of a woman’s time healing from an unexpected chronic illness. She’s given a snail as a companion during her long days alone laid up in bed, and becomes fascinated with what the creature has to teach her. For anyone interested in what’s to be gained by moving slower, and fans of inspirational nature writing, this book is for you.
Listen
First, all of the books above double as FANTASTIC audiobooks if that’s more your speed. Nothing like getting lost in a story while you’re driving around town.
But artists that are August to me: Leon Bridges, Ennio Moriccone, Maggie Rogers, Kacey Musgraves, Lizzy McAlpine, and Harry Styles.
Wear
I’m not a fashion expert, but I do feel like when it comes to dressing in August you really have to stick with the summer pieces you’ll miss when it’s February. If you have a tank top, some shorts, sandals, or even just being intentional with styling yourself for comfort during the heat. Here are some men’s and women’s looks that feel end-of-summer to me.
Okay friends. Hopefully you feel freshly inspired to love August and not wish it away too quickly. Other August-lovers chime in on what I missed!
Also the official August Starbucks drink for those of you pining for a PSL is an iced caramel macchiato!
love,
g
Funny enough I read that at the end of the month (catching up on many Substack posts) and this year’s August was one of my favorites. Now I have ways to make next year’s even better.
August and January .. my favourite months !! The post-everything days where we can just take stock and practice being present .
Both my kids have August birthdays which has kind of changed the pace but Summer babies rock ! Xx