An Open Letter To The Sun

Dear Sun,

I realize that you mean well when you shine your rays down on Earth, but it is extremely hot when you do so in the middle of summer. Do you mind toning the temperature down a few degrees?

I am hoping that I am not the only person on this planet who has ever hoped for this to happen. I am very sensitive to extreme heat and cool temperatures to the point where my body cannot do anything. Therefore, in summer heat waves of 90-100 degree weather, I feel myself being useless.

This week has been good and bad for me in that sense. Working in a daycare all week allowed me to be in air conditioned rooms where I could be productive. However, at home (or the few times we went outside) it would feel like I would be melting. Even sleeping with a ceiling fan and oscillating fan has not been very helpful in battling this heat wave.

I can only imagine what it must truly be like to live in a location where there is no air conditioning or place too cool down. Those people who live in such grueling heat wave conditions are certainly stronger than I am, for I would never last. Even with an access to a pool, a beach, or even a cold shower, I find myself thinking that it is too hot to manage. As selfish as it must be for me to say such a thing, it takes energy to do those things; and energy is something I do not have in the heat.

Whenever there is a heat wave I always regret wishing that it was winter again, even though I still do. For one, I hate the cold more than the heat. But secondly, I want to enjoy my summer while I still have one. It goes by too fast and I know if it was winter, I would be stuck in a classroom learning about whatever.

For the past five summers, each heat wave for me has gotten much worse. I can hardly sleep in my room, and when I can, it takes a few hours to sleep. There are times where I sweat so much that I feel as though I am melting. I cannot stay outside for more than a couple hours without getting burned or feeling like I was put in a toaster oven. It hinders my love for summer, because the sun's rays are just far too strong.

In some cases, it is not really the heat that affects me as poorly. Rather, it is the humidity and lack of rain that adds to the temperature that does. Either way, it does not do me any favors in trying to be productive.

So as I continue, my letter to the sun, I hope maybe it will change the amount of heat it exposes us too in the summer. Enough that it would a manageable 70-80 degrees Fahrenheit should be sufficient.

Thank you,

Someone who does not do well in heat.