It's June and we're officially in our first Finnish summer. I was remarking to my boss how suddenly green this place is compared to winter and he said it's like it's two different countries.
It really is. Winter and snow and ice seem like a dark, distant memory. Dark, literally - how did we manage on six hours of "daylight"? Distant - could there really ever have been snow covering this lush field of wildflowers? Did we really tromp knee-deep in snow and go sledding on this now-verdant landscape? Did we really come inside with our boots dripping with slush instead of our sandals shedding sand and river water?
I remember when we visited our friends in Germany in March 2013. We arrived there in what still seemed like the dead of winter (it was unseasonably cold and snowed on Easter while we were there), but fresh from the UAE, our skin was sun-kissed and glowing, with freckled cheeks and sun-blonde hair. Seasons meant nothing to us. It was always sunny; we'd spent all the UAE winter outside; that was just how it was.
Here, the first time we went out of doors in less than three weatherproof layers a week or two ago, our skin was desperately pale and aching for the sun. I think the Finns feel it too - any excuse to let the sun shine on our limbs and hair and faces: we'll take it. It feels delicious.
We hardly recognize each other, though - for months we've all been saying our hellos (or mutual glances) to our neighbors with eyes squinted against the wind and mouths tucked into jacket collars against the cold. There's a dad I regularly see on the playground here and the first time I saw him without winter gear on, I thought, "I know that man...but who is he? I can't quite place him." Oh, it's just that's what the rest of his face actually looks like, only I never knew thanks to the hat, scarf, coat, etc.
Meanwhile, I went running tonight at 9pm and wished I had brought sunglasses. And there was a rainbow. And it seemed that every inch of land was covered in a different shade of green. Finnish summer is beautiful!
