Sweet Summer Nights

I took this picture 366 days ago, at around 3.30am, just before sunrise. I’m sure it smelled the same that night, as it does this night.

The scent of an early summer night in Finland is nothing less than intoxicating, but never overpowering, never heavy, never sickly sweet. It’s in the same family of scents with fresh laundry and rain after a hot day. The air smells of new green leaves of the birch trees, freshly bloomed apple trees and lilacs, of cut grass. A light breeze from a lake makes everything blend together into a fresh summer cocktail.

The colours of the night, light blue tones in the midnight and the warm tones ahead of the rising sun, emphasize the scents of the summer night. They add into the harmony, blending together perfectly. I can’t imagine a pitch black night with a sweet Finnish summer scent, it doesn’t exist. Even if Alice were to help me imagine six impossible things before breakfast, that summer scent and a black night would never be together.

_{Freewrite for a sleepless night.}