Soy Candles

When I moved my family into a new neighborhood, I noticed that our next-door neighbor had an incredible collection of wind chimes hanging on his front porch. There were wind chimes of every size, shape, color and sound. The sound of them all chiming in the wind was incredible, but a little too much for my taste. Luckily, his house is far enough away from ours that we only hear them chiming while we are outside doing yard work. Some people enjoy the sound of many chimes at once, but I prefer the beautiful sound of a single wind chime swaying in the wind.

One day not long after we first moved in, I came home from work to find a gift-wrapped box on my front porch. A note attached to the gift read, “Welcome to the neighborhood!” It was from the neighbor next door with the impressive wind chime collection. Lo and behold, the gift turned out to be beautiful, unique wind chimes. I went next door to thank my neighbor, then hung the wind chimes on my back porch. That was several years ago, and now I am used to the peaceful sound of wind chimes while I garden or just relax. They really do make great housewarming gifts, as my very nice neighbor proved.

There are many sensory indicators that put us in mind of a warm summer day. The smell of barbecue chicken, for instance, will call up memories of many cookouts past. The mere sight of roadside vendors with their hand-scrawled signs often reminds us of stopping along the shoulder to taste a few seasonal berries. But some of the most distinct summer signals come in the form of auditory cues.

Birdsongs are an obvious example; the melodious cry of a bluebird makes waking up early on a summer morning a bit more tolerable. And, of course, who could forget the faint clamor of metal wind chimes as they are slowly manipulated in the afternoon breeze? When these sounds and many others culminate in one pleasant soundtrack, you know the lazy days of summer are here.