Reframing the heat

It’s hot. 40C today, and it’s only June. It’s the kind of heat that makes you hug the sides of buildings as you walk down the street (at half the pace you normally would), and pause under trees far from the edge of the road waiting to cross the street. Especially if you’re silly enough to go outside at 3pm.

We’ve been at 35-ish C for a while. It’s higher than normal for June and I had taken to grumbling about that most uncontrollable of the long list of matters I can’t impact: The weather.

I was flailing trying to figure out the most useful balance between aircon and open windows at night. I was annoyed about how early I needed to get up to exercise for it to feel cool enough. I told myself I couldn’t stand it and that I couldn’t deal with it. I told others that, being Nordic, I “wasn’t made for this.”

This went on until last week, when I realised I was utterly bored with myself. This attitude of mine was useless. I had actively chosen to move to a place that has solid heat for at least two months of the year, but I had clearly forgotten to choose how to best deal with that.

So I’ve switched to reframe mode. It’s hot but I can manage. It’s a dry heat, which makes it easier. I’m lucky to live close to a lot of green spaces and to have aircon when I need it. The shopping mall that I’m no fan of has come into its own as a vast space of cooler air to cut through to avoid the sun-drenched piazza. While I might be Scandinavian, I’m first and foremost human and humans have wonderful ways of adapting.  

The switch from ‘I can’t’ to ‘I can’ has changed everything. There’s new energy in my posture and in my mind. I’m more alive. Toasty days won’t stop me.  

There is in fact something quite delightful in having to adjust your day to something beyond yourself. Fresher mornings are glorious in a way they wouldn’t be if the whole day was the same. Late nights are teeming with life outdoors. Eventually, I might even figure out how to fit in enough sleep.