OK, it’s an invasive foreign weed, but it’s very pretty.

What happened to summer?

Our weather forecasters told us recently that summer in the northern half of the British Isles has been the most miserable since about nine years ago. The temperatures have hovered round about average but the amount of rain and wind has made them impossible to enjoy. As, nine years ago, we spent our summer in Portugal, I can’t even remember the last bad summer and simply feel aggrieved by this one. And now, we are told, it is autumn so there is nothing to look forward to although I do know there are occasionally nice days in September and October. However, it’s already getting dark early in the evening.

We gather the southern half of the country had a better deal, with heat waves, no less. I suggested to a friend from Canterbury that they could share, but it seems that isn’t possible… Here, we’ve had maybe ten days of reasonable weather, scattered over the entire three months and very unpredictable. I think I’ve only once gone out without a coat or umbrella carried ‘just in case’. We’ve eaten outside a handful of times and had one family barbeque which was very last minute though enjoyed by all, especially the dog. I am extremely tired of my spring/autumn wardrobe and have rarely worn any summer clothing.

I am old and whilst I don’t look back on halcyon summers I do remember some very disappointing ones. Nothing, however, as consistently miserable as this has been. Last winter, to compensate (?) was comparatively mild, but again, very wet. If the next one is similar I think it will have a very depressing effect on most of the people who live north of the midlands.

We haven’t had a holiday simply because we didn’t get round to organising anything and things kept cropping up to prevent any impulsive getaways. So I find myself vaguely depressed even though life is perfectly fine apart from the weather. I have, of course, done a lot of reading and writing, but that could as easily have been done in the garden.

And now it’s autumn. The leaves are already turning and falling. The sun is shining but we have frosts and hail. Summer , such as it was, is definitely in the past.