7 Days in Sunny June (Even When It Rains…)
There’s a certain kind of magic in this song, isn’t there? “7 Days in Sunny June” plays like a memory you half-remember, smile and completely feel. The kind that comes with a waft of summer air and the clink of glasses in the garden with friends. It makes you smile for no reason, start dancing in my case, and remember how good it feels to be warm, inside and out.
But here’s the rub. The last few Junes have not exactly delivered on the promise have they? Seven consecutive days of sun? We were lucky to get one and a half; British optimism is a delicate thing, easily undone by the threat of drizzle.
Still, this year I’m taking the plunge. Not into the sea, obviously, (because I hate getting cramp – not in a Jaden Hendrikse way), but into the idea that the sun doesn’t have to shine outside for us to feel happy. You can’t outsource joy to the Met Office. If you want warmth, you have to build it in. Let me go on a meander…
At work, there’s always some form of weather. Storms of deadlines, awkward silences in meetings when Mr Grumpy is on a rant, an occasional flood of ideas that feel wonderful until someone says, “but what’s the ROI?” Hence we have to learn to bring our own weather system. Some days I do banter in network groups and/or voice a genuinely meant compliment. Other days I am the fog, drifting silently between tasks with no visible purpose and even less direction. The point is, if I waited for conditions to be perfect before I tried to feel good, I’d be cold and wet most of the time-not a good state of mind !
I’ve seen this in other businesses too. The most successful people I’ve met aren’t those who waited for the market to smile at them. They’re the ones who opened the umbrella, rolled up their sleeves, and launched anyway. They’ve bet on themselves. They’ve lit fires indoors when the sun refused to play nice. And they’ve invited the kind of people into their life who fan flames rather than dampen spirits.
Personally, it’s taken me longer to learn the same rule. I’ve lost entire seasons to the idea that business success and happiness had to look a certain way. I thought peace would come when things were calm, when everyone behaved, when nothing hurt. But it turns out peace arrives when you stop asking the universe and others for permission and just sit still with what is.
Some of the brightest days I’ve ever known didn’t come with an A* and sundowners. They came in odd places: in a kitchen, sharing leftovers and life stories. Playing Cards Against Humanity. Dancing by a pool with mates, even if I got dunked. From Nikki, the motorsport WEC champion who replied to a comment on social media and inspired this community. In a car still jiggling to the tune on the radio after parking up. In a message received at midnight that simply said, “Merci.” They weren’t shiny, but they were real. And real warms you in a way the sun never could.
So this year, I’m making my own June. Seven days of whatever comes. I’m throwing open metaphorical windows even if the forecast mocks me, and choosing people who feel like clear skies no matter whatever; the ones who have my back. I’m putting music on loud and saying yes to things that make me smile. And when it rains, I’ll just let it. Some things grow better that way.
Pooh Bear: even when you hide behind clouds, I still know where the sun is.
Photo by May Cloud
