Who doesn’t love lakeside’s summer rainy season? People relish the relief from the scorching heat of April and May.

We marvel at the sudden transformation of sere hillsides turned emerald green with lush foliage. We savor the aroma of petrichor, the pungent scent that emanates from the earth as the first rains fall on dry soil.

Out in our gardens, it’s great to be able to roll up the hoses and let Mother Nature take charge of watering the lawn and flower beds. Although we have to keep up with more frequent mowing of the grass, we can enjoy watching seedlings and new plantings take root and blossom, and sit back and smell the roses in all their glory.

But when August rolls around the panorama changes. We have entered what I call the season of decay.

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