Heat Is Not Just a Number, It’s an Attitude (standard:humor, 904 words)
Author: Godspenman	Added: Jun 29 2025	Views/Reads: 0/0	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
My attitude should not be based on what’s going on around me. The heat and the cold comes and goes, but my relationship with God is firmly rooted in God’s Word.

Lately, the temperature in Florida has topped 100°. I saw on the news
that the Northeast is also hitting 100°. 

It's easy to see why everyone wants to come to Florida. If they can't,
they wish for some of our heat. Well, good luck with that. We'll send 
you all you can handle. 

The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage and I have lived in Florida for
over thirty years. We've enjoyed every single day, and we have no plans 
to leave. At first the heat was more than we expected, but within a 
short time we got used to it. Now we enjoy it. 

Records show this is the hottest June our country has seen. This heat
has serious consequences. The human body can't handle such heat for 
long. 

Just the other day, The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage complained
about how hot it was. “Oh, my,” she said, “where does all this heat 
come from?” 

For a moment, I almost answered. But after 54 years of blissful
marriage, I've learned when to speak and when to stay quiet. Of course, 
I'm still learning when to speak. That's one of my biggest challenges. 

I could have said, "It's summer, the sun is out, and the heat comes from
the sun." But I knew that wasn't the answer she wanted, so I held back. 


I remember my father saying that life isn't about numbers but attitude.
I'm starting to understand what he meant. 

When I was young I had two female dogs at home, male dogs in the
neighborhood would gather in our backyard when the females were “in 
heat.” It was something beyond my control even though I tried. 

But that's not the attitude I mean here. 

At my stage in life, when I step out into the hot sun, I start sweating.
That sweat drives me crazy. The sweat runs from the top of my head all 
the way to the bottom of my feet. Everything about me is soaked. 
Believe me, it's not my favorite attitude. 

I walked into the house and The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage
looked up and asked, “Did you take a shower with your clothes on?" Then 
she laughs. I did not respond. 

My recliner is next to our big glass door. I can see the sun shining and
feel the heat. I sigh deeply because I'm glad to be on the cool side. I 
enjoy the heat outside while I stay cool indoors. 

One thing about this heat season that I have learned is, I avoid driving
when it's this hot—not because my A/C doesn't work, but because other 
drivers have attitudes I can't relate to. The other day, I was driving 
across town. I saw cars go by with drivers shaking their fists out the 
window. It's like they thought that would fix anything! 

If I shook my fist, it would only create more problems. I don't think
those drivers realized that shaking their fists out the window didn't 
make the heat go away. 

I don't want to drive among those people. After all, I love living. 

One great perk of being retired is that I can choose not to drive if I
don't want to. I am increasingly appreciating that. 

My body isn't as strong as it used to be, so I avoid the 100° heat
whenever possible. I respect my body, even if I'm not sure it respects 
me. That's a different issue. 

In the late afternoon, the sun had been blazing all day and showed no
signs of letting up. I was in my recliner drinking some ice tea when 
The Gracious Mistress of the Parsonage sat down in the rocking chair 
and asked, “When will this heat go away?” 

I chuckled to myself, remembering about a month ago a cloudy day with


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