Wells resident Julie Seedorf’s column appears every Monday. Send email to her at hermionyvidaliabooks@gmail.com.

“Summer will be gone before you know it.” That seems to be the statement we all say every year when summer starts. It is August, and now everyone is lamenting, “Where did the summer go?” We always seem surprised when we make that statement. But it is a fact the summer months do not last long.

In the winter we always moan that we can’t wait for summer because we are tired of the below zero temperatures. In the summer when the humidity is high and the temperature in the 90s, we hear the opposite: “I can’t wait until fall and winter when it is cooler.” We are fickle creatures when it comes to weather.

My grandchildren started school this week. They were happy to get back and see their friends and get back in the groove, although I know in a few weeks or months that happiness will fade, and they will be anticipating a break in their school year. They too, are fickle schoolchildren.

The stores already have Thanksgiving and some have Christmas in their aisles, and I imagine for some people it feeds their anticipation of cooler weather and holidays, with the warm fuzzy feeling of family and friends gathering.

We are always anticipating tomorrow. Is that the reason we miss today? My head has been flaky lately when it comes to appointments and to-do lists, especially if the to-do list is in my head. It grows and grows and becomes enormous and a source of anxiety, because in my head, I wonder how I can possibly get everything done. It seems unmanageable, added to the fact that on my to-do list are always things that I took on myself knowing it would cause me stress, and chores hard for me to get done because of time constraints. I am only one woman. My brain doesn’t always realize that but my body does.

When I think about summer gone by, I think of all the things I didn’t get time for and I missed, such as the fairs, extra visits with my grandchildren and seeing friends that I have not visited with in years. These were all on my to-do list of the summer. This year I was going to make the most of summer and now it is gone, and I lament because I didn’t get those things done. I feel in a way, as if I missed out. And of course that makes me anxious. I didn’t take the meaningful time I wanted with those I care about.

What would happen to our world if we all lived in today and took one thing on our to-do list, worked on that without worrying about the other things we needed to complete? Is it possible? Would the world stop if we didn’t get some things done on our to-do list?

And what about those organizations that depend on that one super person to get something done; would they survive without that person? Remember Ben Franklin’s quote: “If you want something done, ask a busy person.” Well that one super person is probably frazzled, but feels someone needs to do it. I remember those days as a volunteer feeling if I didn’t do what was asked there would be no one to to head up the committee or get the task done. One wise person one day said to me, “Quit feeling guilty. If you do everything and lead everything then you are not giving someone else the chance to be of service. And if no one steps up, then maybe it is time for the activity or group to cease because it is not too important to others to keep it going.”

I am frazzled this week, and I, too, am looking forward to fall, all the while lamenting what I missed this summer. My to-do list in my mind is freaking me out because I do not take the time to live in the moment.

There is a little bit of summer left. Don’t follow my lead. Take the time to wake up in the morning and prioritize your list, working at it one thing at a time without it playing out over and over in your head. Go out and play and enjoy whatever festivals or summertime activity is still available.

And possibly we need to change the nothings we exchange everyday about the seasons and the weather. “Summer is still here and it is beautiful.” “I love winter and the snow.” Maybe, just maybe, if we are thinking the opposite of the statement, by saying those words, the statement will come true and we will quit anticipating the seasons ahead and enjoy the seasons of life whether it be mother nature, or our season of life.