Warmth

     There's something about a "warm" sounding song that I just love.  It's hard to even describe what "warm" sounds like, but it's just that.  It's comforting.  To me, warm songs remind me of places, specific events, and people.  I once described a song to an old friend I once had as feeling like "a warm blanket around me".  That song was Re: Stacks by Bon Iver.  I still love that song, and think I always will.  There are more songs that are like warm blankets to me, now.  Some make me reminisce, dream, remember; others make me smile, dream, and take me far away.  I've realized over the past two or so years that I love folk-y music, and that if someone asked me what type of music I listened to, that should be my go-to answer.  The song that "inspired" this post is Upward Over The Mountain by Iron & Wine (above).  I hadn't listened to them for a while, and then put a mix I found on for some essay-writing music.  This song came on and I fell in love all over again.
     This song makes me think of the forest and summer.  It makes me want so badly to just go sit by the lake while the sun, warm on our faces, sets.  We'll maybe crack a beer or two, maybe someone will have their guitar, or we'll just have a portable radio and put this song on.  It makes me crave bare feet in the sand but no tropical beaches come to mind.  I see maritime beaches, ocean or lake, with tall grass and boardwalks or pine trees silhouetted against the sky rather than palm trees.  Not that there's anything wrong with the tropics, I'd love to go someday, but I just want my Nova Scotian summer.
     I miss bonfires on the beach, with blankets and oversize hoodies for when it gets cold.  I miss evening walks through the suburbs sipping Tim Hortons coffee.  I miss late-night drives with my friends, going out to one of their cottages and just talking about our lives.  We'd grab some beer, drive out, get out of the car and stand in the dark by the lake or sit on the patio - we never had the keys.  And then we'd drive around sometimes, listen to music and sing at the top of our lungs.  It was simple and that's what I loved about it.  I remember one night I went camping with a friend's family and another friend to watch the meteor shower.  We found this flat slab of rock on a cliff and brought a blanket out with us and lay on it for a few hours, staring up at the sky with the lake meters below our feet.  It was just so calm, peaceful and nice; I don't think I could've asked for anything more. 
     Over the past two years I've discovered that these are things I love - I hate bugs but I adore camping, and just being out in the trees.  There's something soothing about it.  There are big places where I want to go and see but for now I'm happy just going out of town for a weekend and sitting around a campfire, singing songs and having a few drinks.  So here's to just a few more months until the warmth of sun is back, and we can just be teenagers again.
     We'll sit around and do nothing, and love every moment of it.