"Slow down; you move too fast. You got to make the morning last..." ~ Paul Simon

The famous lyricist of Simon & Garfunkel fame had it pegged. Slow down. We move too fast - morning, noon, and night.

We are blessed to live in a beautiful town, and summer gives us the opportunity to appreciate it at its finest.

The Newtown Forest Association presents us with lands open to the public, from the tiny 196 Hattertown or Bloom Preserves along Hattertown Road and from Obtuse Road South, respectively, to the expansive Holcombe Hill Wildlife Preserve on Great Hill Road, to the newly acquired wooded trails and property accessed from Palestine Road at Cherry Grove Farm. The Nettleton Preserve at the top of Castle Hill offers one of the most iconic views of central Newtown, gazing over recently refurbished orchards, across the steeples of Newtown Congregational Church and the Meeting House, glancing across the rooftops of our town.

Take a walk along the fruit trail at Fairfield Hills, where the scents and sights of flowering plants have been lovingly placed for the enjoyment of all. Wander across the grassy meadow; relish shaded trails and listen to the sounds of summer: birds singing, baseball teams at bat, the hum of pollinators busily ensuring the continuation of life, the murmur of voices as others take in summer's bounty for the senses.

The 2nd Company Governor's Horse Guard is a bucolic scene of horses rambling about the white-fenced pastures, clouds scudding across wide open skies.

State forest trails bring us through deep woods and alongside rivers bubbling over mossy rocks, a shy turtle or three sunning on a fallen log that quickly splash into the water upon approach. Kayakers and canoeists paddle silently past at the edge of the lake, or the purr of a motorboat breaks the silence.

Town parks resound with young voices at play, spinning adventurously at the skate park, splashing in the pool, or clambering over playground obstacles. Music echoes from a bandshell. Picnickers dot grassy areas, icy drinks at hand.

Back roads and main thoroughfares alike give us pause in the summer season. Privately owned properties bloom with colorful flowers - some native and wild, some carefully nurtured by homeowners - if we only slow down to notice. Bushes are heavy with blossoms, and shrubs drooping with wild berries invite wild birds and animals to partake, as well as human gatherers, should he or she be quick enough.

This is the season to treat our senses. Everywhere, greenery greets our weary eyes. It is such a long-awaited time of year, and one that is oh-so brief in the grand scheme of the year.

The heat and humidity of the recent weeks, and some still to come, beg us to slow our pace. "Hurry" and "Haste" will be our middle names again before we know it.

Now is the moment to realize that to be present and wondrous at the visions given us by nature and by neighbors is truly a gift of summer.