The Mayo Clinic defines seasonal affective disorder as a mood disorder characterized by depression that occurs at the same time every year. Typically when people think of this disorder, they associate it with winter — the sun rarely shines, temperatures are colder than usual, and being outdoors just doesn’t bring the same pleasure as it does in other seasons. Sound familiar? “…the sun rarely shines, temperatures are colder than usual, and being outdoors just doesn’t bring the same pleasure as it does in other seasons.” Guys and gals the rain this summer has been unbearable. There’s no denying it. Waking up every morning, grabbing the umbrella on my way out the door, and sloshing in puddles to and from the office undoubtedly takes its toll.

But last week, there was a change in the winds (general cliched phrase, I don’t actually know much about meteorology…) and it appears that our 40 days and 40 nights of rain — or so it seemed — is coming to an end. So how does one celebrate finally having the ability to walk down the street without destroying a pair of shoes? By exploring Columbus, of course! Taking a morning to snap some pics of Columbus locations that I have visited as part of my fellowship experience got me out of the seemingly endless funk caused by bad weather. I took some time to explore downtown, visited the state house, and walked back to work by way of a bustling Nationwide Avenue during lunch hour. Seeing all the people out and about in addition to the blue skies more than made up for the fact that I was still dressed for colder temperatures…

Bottom line, the weather can affect your mood. If it rains every single day for a month, then odds are your attitude will reflect that. It’s a struggle for everybody to keep a positive attitude in the face of miserable conditions. But when the sun comes out and the smiling faces follow, Columbus just seems like a happier town. Here’s to more beautiful days as we wind down the summer of 2015.