How Many Summers Do YOU Have Left? Make Them Count.

​Okay, let's start with the math. If you are in your 50s or 60s, statistically speaking, you might have 25, 30, maybe even 35 summers left on this beautiful planet. That's not meant to scare you. It's meant to inspire you. Because when we name the number, time suddenly feels pretty real, and real is powerful. How many summers have you let slip by, lost in to-do lists, people pleasing, overworking, or waiting for someday? How many years have you told yourself, maybe next year I'll take that trip, or maybe next summer I'll finally get to have that fun I keep dreaming of? Well, you know what? There is no time like the present, and this is your summer.

Do you remember when the last best summer you ever had was? I know for me it's been a few years, and and I don't know about you, but I remember when just being able to run through the sprinkler and pick peas out of the garden made it a great day. I guess things are a little more complicated now, but they don't have to be. Let's pause for a moment and ask, what does a delicious summer look like for you? Is it spontaneous road trips and roadside ice cream stands? Is it mornings in your garden with your heart wide open, the sun on your face, and your hands in the dirt? Is it dancing barefoot at a concert in the park under the stars? Or maybe it's something quieter. A lawn chair on the sand, your toes in the water, and a good book in your lap.

Whatever your summer dream is, I want you to claim it. Because summer isn't about doing more, it's about being more present, more open, more you. Here's the thing I love most about midlife. We finally know what matters. We've lived enough to understand that time is precious. But we also still have so much time left to explore, to reinvent, and to play. This is the season when we finally stop living for others and we start to live for ourselves on purpose, out loud, and without apology.

Here are a few gentle but powerful ways to embrace the summers that you have left.

Number one, make yourself a summer bucket list.
This can be really fun and there are so many things that you can do that don't even have to cost a penny. So your summer bucket list is not a to-do list. Instead, create a to feel list. How do you want to feel by September? Maybe you want to take a pickleball class or learn how to paddleboard. Maybe you want to try a cold plunge. Maybe it's an art class for you or learning a new language.

Here where I live, there are a whole bunch of small waterfalls all over the island, and I decided that this is my summer to go and find them. Every weekend I'm going to take a road trip to someplace different and make it my mission to check out all five or six of them. I know the other day I was actually walking down my driveway taking out my garbage, and I looked back in my yard and I saw my fire pit with my four chairs around it. And it was Friday morning about eight o'clock or something like that. And it just struck me, I thought, oh my gosh, I never get to go camping anymore. But I have a fire pit in my backyard. So why don't I just pretend I'm camping and go in the house and make myself a cup of coffee and go sit out and have a fire in the backyard. So I did that and it was awesome. Honestly, I'm gonna do it way more often, but there's so many things like that that we attach to camping, or I only do that when I'm on vacation. And it doesn't have to be that way because this is your life, and you get to write the rules and you get to do it however you want.

Number two, say yes to one thing you've always wanted to do.
Even if it feels silly, especially if it feels silly. Give yourself permission to get out of your comfort zone and live a little. Make sure you put it on your calendar, schedule it, and commit to it because you deserve it.

Number three, let go of one thing that's weighing you down.
Whether it's clutter, a commitment, or a belief, let it go and open yourself up to bringing in more joy.

Number four, be a tourist in your own town.
When is the last time you walked down the street in your hometown and really went into the shops and met the people and saw what actually surrounds you every single day? How many times do we drive past everything great that people come from miles around to enjoy in our city when they're on vacation that we never even take advantage of?
Back when I was 18, I moved to Los Angeles to study uh voice. And I remember I was working at this little cafe called Mimi's Cafe, and it was about 15 minutes from Disneyland. And I remember saying to all the people that worked with me there, I would say, Oh my god, you guys must go to Disneyland all the time. And you know what? Almost every single one of them said, I haven't been to Disneyland in like 20 years. I don't even think about it actually. And I was just appalled. I was like, what? And it's always that way with us, right? If something is right down the street and we can go anytime we want, most often we never go. And it's crazy. So, and even last year, I remember we have this beautiful pier that goes out over the ocean, and tourists come for miles around. You can fish right off the dock, and there's a beautiful ice cream stand there, and they do fish and chips and stuff. And last summer I went for a walk down there and I stopped and got myself a nice big ice cream cone, and I just hung out and took in the vibe, and I was like, why on earth do I only come here like once a year or when I have company in town? It's crazy. It's such a beautiful place to be, and it's so fun to watch all the families on vacation with their kids. And if you get really lucky, every once in a while a pod of orcas will go by. So that has become something I put on my summer bucket list and on my regular list, "to feel list", because it's so much fun to go, and I don't want to wait for joy anymore.

​So here's my invitation for you. Don't wait for the perfect summer. This year, live your summer bucket list, lean into joy, and make this one of the best summers you've had in a really long time. And don't forget, every summer from here on out can be better than the last. But it's our job to claim it, to create it, and to go and make it happen. Having 30 summers left is not a countdown. Let's use it like a treasure map and live each summer like it matters. Let's fill our days with meaning, our evenings with wonder, and our lives with stories and memories that we're proud to share. I hope you have an amazing week, and I can't wait to hear about all the fun adventures you go on.