Here Comes The Sun...

Photo not taken this weekend, but you get the gist...

Something happened this weekend.  A big, yellow ball appeared in the sky.  A big, yellow ball that hasn't made many appearances, recently.  We've had wind, rain, frost, even snow, but actual sunshine that you can feel on your skin?  That seems to have been in hiding for the last few months.

But this weekend, out it came and with it came the definitive proof that this is Britain.  Everyone suddenly decided en masse to hit the beach, or the park.  Barbecues were brought out of hibernation and I spent a good while stuffing all my jumpers into a drawer, not to be seen again until at least September.  Because if there's one thing we know here, it's that the sun is not guaranteed ("ne'er cast a clout till May is out" and all that...), so when it comes out, we've got to make the most of it!

And make the most of it, I did.  Mum and I took our dog, Rusty, to a local park and let him run free, chasing balls and sniffing the bums of any other hound lucky (or unlucky...) enough to cross his path.  And sniffing the bums of their owners, just for good measure...

I went for walks without a coat on (I KNOW) and felt that lovely warm sensation on the back of my neck as I strolled by the river, watching the sunlight dapple the gentle tide.

Today at work, I willingly spent almost an hour outdoors, defying my hay fever with the kind of foolhardy resilience I usually reserve for when I'm in the front row at a concert and I really need a wee, but don't want to lose my place...

Seriously, once I'm on that barrier, I'm going NOWHERE.

It's a bit of a corny old cliche, but there really is something lovely about the sun coming out after a long bout of cold, grey, rainy weather.  You can't help but look around and notice that the world has taken on a new hue.  It's almost like seeing colours for the first time - the sky looks bluer, the grass is greener and everything has a beautiful, golden sheen.  

Things look brighter in a literal and metaphorical sense, once the sun comes out.  Somehow, the Winter blues start to lift from our shoulders and we fill our heads with thoughts of paddling in the sea, picnics in the park and long, light Summer evenings that seem full of possibility...

...That is, until we start thinking about hay fever, wasp bites, sunburn, headaches and, in my case, making that hugely important decision between having to shave my legs every day, or simply hoping nobody notices the prickly in-between days (hey, being single does have a perk!).  Like I said, we're British; we can only handle so much optimism.

But seriously, once the sun is in the sky again after a long, damp and chilly Winter, you just can't help but feel better for it.  That sensation of warmth on your skin - of shrugging off your jacket after months of wrapping yourself up in layer after layer and still being too cold - is a genuinely lovely feeling.

So, I may be getting in on this act a bit early, because of course we'll have chilly, rainy days before the Summer really gets started, but here's to the sunshine.  I've missed you.  Please stick around for a while?!