The Ecstasy of Humidity

🌈 Abstract

The article is a personal essay about the author's love for the sweaty Florida summers and how it has become a part of her identity.

🙋 Q&A

[01] Advertisement and Letter of Recommendation

1. What is the advertisement about?

• The advertisement is for a service called "Your Places: Extreme Weather" that provides custom alerts for extreme weather events in places in the U.S. that the user chooses.

2. What is the author's relationship to the sweaty Florida summers?

• The author was born and raised in Central Florida and has visceral childhood memories of the sweat, smell, and physical looseness that the Florida heat encouraged.
• After moving away to places with seasons, the author came to miss the sweat and heat of Florida, and eventually returned there for an extended stay during the pandemic.
• The author sees her love of sweat as a turning point, a mark of change that allowed her to feel safe and at home in the seemingly inhospitable Florida climate.

[02] Returning to Florida

1. Why did the author initially leave Florida?

• The author fled Florida in her 20s, believing that moving away was the way to bury her tumultuous adolescence and young adulthood.
• She was convinced that becoming the person she intended to be required living in a place with seasons, even as she struggled to adapt to Northeast winters.

2. What led the author to eventually return to Florida?

• After her father's death in 2019, the author felt a call towards home and the Florida heat.
• A pandemic-induced stay in Florida in 2020 ended up lasting three years, during which the author rediscovered her love for the sweat and physical ease of the Florida summers.
• The author sees her ability to embrace the Florida heat as a sign of personal growth and stability, a way of finding love for where she's from.

[03] The Significance of Sweat

1. How does the author describe the role of sweat in her life?

• Sweat is a visceral part of the author's childhood memories and identity, rooting her in her physical body and the Florida landscape.
• In other places, the author has been guilty of forgetting her body, but the Florida heat would not let her forget, bringing renewed attention to her physical self.
• Sweat doesn't just root the author in her body, but reminds her that Florida is forever entwined with her own identity.

2. What benefits does the author associate with the heat and sweat?

• As an amateur boxer, the author has trusted coaches who extolled the benefits of heat, saying it can improve cardio endurance and strengthen immune systems.
• The author sees her love of sweat as a turning point, a mark of personal change and growth that allowed her to feel safe and at home in the Florida climate.

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