Tag Archives: summer

Summertime, and the Livin’ is Green

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 Ah, summer. It’s here in the Northern Hemisphere. The chance to lie on the dock listening to the murmur of water, or on the grass watching the clouds float across the sky. Summer vacation is our chance to do all those things we have put on hold during the routines of the rest of the year. No matter what our age or life stage, summer is full of expectations. We might dream of doing nothing, of having a grand adventure – even some romance – or just communing with Nature. Unfortunately, those lazy, hazy days of summer can prove to be more complicated than we’d like…and even downright harmful. That dock may be off-limits as the beach is closed due to bacterial pollution. Smog often blocks out any glimpse of the clouds. Hiking may be abandoned because mosquito bites can bring much more than the odd itchy bump or because we fear forest fires. Gardening is frustrating because drought conditions make you feel guilty if you water but the plants dry up if you don’t. You think twice about embarking on that family car trip because of the high cost of gasoline and the amount of air pollution it will generate. And the older you get, the hotter and stickier summer seems. Besides, once you have everybody slathered up with sun screen (and that’s after you tried to figure out which brand is most effective and still safe), outfitted with their bug suits, sunhats and sunglasses, you’re too tired to go anywhere anyway! Maybe you should just stay home and pick the dandelions that seem to be multiplying by the minute now that everybody in town has stopped using herbicides.  

But wait! It doesn’t have to be like that. Summertime can be simple and fun without exploiting Nature, damaging the environment, worrying about your family’s health and stressing you out. Whether you’re staying home this summer, hiking in the wild, visiting the lake or a big city, our archives is full of ideas and inspiration for having a healthy, energy-efficient, environmentally-friendly summer. So pull up the hammock, pour yourself a glass of iced tea, settle back and explore the possibilities.

There are lots more articles about enjoying your summer in a healthy, natural way in back issues of Natural Life Magazine. You can access them all with an inexpensive subscription to our digital edition.