Summertime is over

Last month I was startled by a colleague’s rendition of the song “Summertime.”

Since 2018, I’ve known this colleague to be a mild-mannered biologist, friendly but measured.

But as Lisa launched into a jazzy version of the Gershwin classic, her voice exploded with a confidence and virtuosity that I had never heard from her. It was electrifying, and also disorienting. How could I have been so completely unaware that this woman can do this marvelous thing?

As I continued listening, my thoughts turned to my eldest child, soon departing for Chicago to study filmmaking at DePaul. What hidden faculties in him might soon become evident?

“One of these mornings,” goes the song, “You’re gonna rise up singing. Then you’ll spread your wings, and you’ll take to the sky….”

That morning is now upon us.

More electrification and disorientation surely lie ahead.