It has happened — summer has come and pretty much gone.

Why is it that the season never seems long enough?

Winter, by contrast, seems to drag on forever. So why can’t summer slow down and take on the lazy, hazy characteristics that I remember from childhood?

No, autumn has not arrived on the calendar, and there are very few leaves on the ground. But there’s a chill in the evenings that has my windows closed. Days are getting shorter and shorter, and there’s just something in the air that tells me summer may have had it’s last blast of the year.

Schools are back in session, and the Barnesville Pumpkin Festival is mere days away. If those aren’t signs that summer has ended, I don’t know what it would take to tell us the best of the season is over.

Of course I love the Pumpkin Festival, and I do enjoy the vivid colors that we are about to see adorning all of our local tress in the coming weeks. But I haven’t managed to do all of the things I planned or wanted to do over the summer.

I never went swimming. I haven’t finished painting my front porch. I didn’t get a chance to drop a line in the water and catch a fish. My garden was an utter failure.

I suppose I could dwell on those things and my dissatisfaction with the results of the season. Or I could just keep on keeping on, making the most of the sunny September skies and warm temperatures that are bound to return at least a few times this year.

I can still paint that porch, and maybe even a few other things around the exterior of my home. It’s certainly not too late to visit Barkcamp State Park and cast a line to hook a few bluegill. And if I really want to swim, it’s just a couple of miles to a local hotel that has an indoor pool that is open to the public in the afternoons.

So, I guess it’s not so bad that the seasons are obviously changing. It’s a great time of year to refresh your landscaping, adding cheery mums that will withstand the cooler temperatures or separating and transplanting species such as hostas or lilies so that they can have even more impact next year.

There are ample opportunities for outdoor fun, such as a trip to see the King Pumpkin and bump into dozens of people I know. It’s a great time to go out walking — not too hot when you really get moving and not so chilly that you need a jacket.

Soon, there will be pumpkins, gourds, cornstalks and bales of hay and straw everywhere you look. And after we get a good taste of that homey, fall decor, we get to add a touch of the spooky as we prepare to celebrate Halloween and greet trick-or-treaters who are hungry for candy.

So despite the fact that I wish summer could go on forever, I know that could never be the case. In fact, if I lived somewhere that the seasons didn’t change as they do here in Eastern Ohio, I’m certain that I would tire of the heat and long for fall colors and maybe even some snow. It’s all just a part of the natural cycle to which I have become so accustomed.

Instead of wishing for a longer summer, I probably should learn to make better use of my time, I should plan ahead to make the most of those hot, sultry days long before they arrive instead of putting off planning until I finish that one last project.

So, for now, I will do my best to enjoy the warm and sunny days that we have left.