So go ahead. Let the golden hour fade. Pull on the sweater. The light will return next June.
You have the tan lines to prove you lived. A white strip where your watch was. The ghost of a bikini strap across your shoulders. But underneath that bronze is the memory of the burn—the 2 PM mistake of falling asleep on the towel, the sting of aloe, the week of shedding like a snake. That’s the first scar: the knowledge that pleasure always has a price. scars of summer after
Now we are in the after . The season hasn’t ended on the calendar, but you can feel the shift. The light is different—lower, honey-colored, desperate. The garden is a mess of overgrown zucchini and tomato vines that have finally given up. The beach towels smell faintly of mildew and regret. So go ahead