22. Sunscreen

Am I the only one who loves the smell of sunscreen?

Anyone? Anyone?

 Bueller?

I think that sometimes smells create more poignant memories than your other senses. I can smell something and associate it with an event that happened 12, maybe 14 years ago. I remember the most random things; the sweaty stench of the gym where I did gymnastics when I was six, and the chemical smell of the cleaner used at the school I went to when I was ten. Now whenever catch a scent, it brings back memories, good and bad.

For me, the memories associated with sunscreen are almost exclusively positive. The pungent, coconutty aroma reminds me of sweltering road trips and sandy beaches; of building forts in the woods that surrounded our house; of our hands stained crimson from picking pound upon pound of dusty raspberries to make into jam; of the endless, pleasantly uneventful days.

In short, sunscreen reminds me of everything that makes summer so great.

17. Sunshine

Sorry I have been MIA for the past little while -- I had several weeks of grueling exams, and was completely drained afterwards. But I'm back, and will be posting more regularly again, now. School is almost done for the year, and I'm looking forward to the pleasantly long, uneventful days of summer.
In the month and a half that I have been gone, the weather has shifted schizophrenically between a gloomy overcast and a cloudless sunshine. It's impossible to dress for weather like that; you either wear shorts and freeze in the still-frigid mornings, or wear pants and boil in the pounding afternoon heat. But the sun seems to finally be here to stay. And there's nothing like nine months of dreary cloudiness to make you want to make the most of those three months of summer.

16. Rain

Over the past week or so, the weather has been beautiful, in a way that is not exactly typical for Washington; there has been lots of sunny skies and beautiful sunsets. But it was all too good to last, and the sky has reverted to the dark, dreary grey so typical of our state. It started last night with a blustering wind, accompanied by a light drizzle. But by the time the morning broke the drizzle had morphed in to a steady stream, coursing rivulets of water down my windshield and pooling in miniature oceans on the uneven parts of the sidewalk.
Just like any situation in life, you can look at the rain in a couple of ways. You can see it as a nuisance, with the chilling sky-tears ruining the sunshine, hiding any hope of summer for at least another week. Or, you can see the beauty in it all -- the  infinite, moody purples and greys and blues of the stormy sky, and the intricate patterns of water droplets as they splash onto the ground. You can notice the streetlamp-light being refracted and distorted by millions of atoms of water. You can admire the rays of sunlight breaking through the oppressive clouds, lightening the sky around them. Even if you don't enjoy the bone-chilling torrent itself (and I mean really, who can blame you?), you can still appreciate the rejuvenation and rebirth that the rain will bring; April showers bring May flowers, as the old adage goes.
In life, there has been, and always will be, challenges. And you can chose to complain and lament, recounting stories of the "good old days" when the sun shone brightly and the world was happy. Or, you can take a step back and find joy within sadness, beauty within pain. Even if, at the moment, it seems that all is lost, and that there is no benefit to all the endless struggles, you will come out on the other side a stronger, more compassionate person because of it.
So find the beauty in the dismal days; treasure the sunshine, but learn to enjoy the rain, too.

8. Sunny Days

Sometimes, sunny days are hard to come by here in Washington state. And sunny becomes a very relative term when the thermometer is barely creeping past 60° and the sky is still half clouds. But there is something so comforting about sunny weather. After months of dreary, storm-darkened skies, a solitary day of sunshine reminds you that there is more good weather to follow.

Comment down below what your favorite activity is to do in the sunshine!