Summer is three days old. My garden is burgeoning. The pond is full of toads. There are snakes and turtles in the pasture. There are spiders making beautiful webs everywhere. And of course, there’s me.

My wife Abby is accustomed to my summer routine. At about seven, as it begins to cool off outside, I set out to complete some chore, like mowing one of the pastures or pulling up weeds in the garden or lopping off limbs from the trees on the fence line.

Often two or three times during the evening, I’ll come back inside. Sometimes it’s to bring Abby a wildflower or a marigold, or to show her something I’ve just picked from the garden. Often when I’m done with the work and there is still some light, Abby will see me grab a camera, and I’m off again to chase the light.

Last night it was the same, and after pulling up grass and weeds in the garden and harvesting some peaches, I grabbed one of my D80s to photograph the Rose of Sharon, which is blooming for the first time after three years of drought. I got to them just at last light, and the results were really nice.

Of course, the first thing I have to do once I am back in the house it show them to Abby.

Summer is here.