A frozen landscape stretches out before you, empty in every direction. You feel like crying in despair but don’t dare because your tears would freeze as soon as they were formed. The cold claws of the Antarctic winter grip your throat in an unmerciful vice, trapping your voice with its silent strength.

Although this scenario is both literally and figuratively the polar opposite of the scorching Sahara, they have one thing in common: they are both deserts.

A desert is defined as any region that receives less than 10 inches of rainfall per year, which means that the continent of Antarctica is actually the world’s largest desert. Both hot desserts, such as the Sonoran and Mojave, as well as cold ones, like the Atacama and Gobi, are included in this category.

You feel the air getting thinner as your lungs cry out with each shallow breath. Your legs are burning with the strain, threatening to collapse. Although you’ve been training for this moment for months, your oxygen-starved brain can only follow one command – to put one foot in front of the other. Each step brings you closer to the summit.

As darkness descends a bit earlier each evening, our opportunity to notice the night sky increases. Gazing up at our galaxy spread out before us like a luminous tapestry, one can’t help but feel very, very small. The absolute vastness of space is so overwhelming that we can easily lose ourselves in its ostensibly endless depths. At the same time, we know that everything was created especially for us, and being aware of the essential role that we play in holding up the universe imbues us with a universal sense of purpose, making us feel very, very significant.

Many Baltimoreans dream of escaping the heavy August heat, even for just a few days. Though their vacations differ in distance and destination, they all seek a change in scenery (and humidity). Some take the opportunity to spend quality family time filled with fun outings, while others just want to relax. But, as much as people enjoy their well-earned time off, there is something special about coming back home. Despite the fear that whatever was left in the fridge will not be pretty, it feels satisfying to finally open your own front door after being away.

As we suffer from soaring temperatures and merciless humidity, there seems to be no refuge for our overheated lives. Since we can’t cool down the outside, a chilly interior is the next best thing. Ice cream makes people feel more comfortable and carefree; it’s hard to resist. With hundreds of variations to choose from, the hardest thing about eating ice cream is which flavor to pick. National favorites include vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, chocolate chip cookie dough, and mint chocolate chip. There even exist some horrific flavors like garlic, pizza, and mustard! Setting that thought aside, ice cream has been the “go to” food of choice for Americans nationwide since the colonial era.

Taking a few moments to pause our hectic race against our “to do” lists to look at the world around us will reveal the bounty of blessings we receive every day. We live in a time when technology allows us to connect with family and friends who live far away, we enjoy the familiarity of our close-knit neighborhoods, and we are free of the weight of anonymity that plagues larger, “in-town,” communities. We are also fortunate to live in a state where the seasons change, each one bringing new gifts. The shift in the temperature, and the mood that comes with it, breaks the monotony of daily life, such that each morning promises adventures in weather that even the meteorologists can’t predict.