Summer rewards us after enduring winter, beckoning with sunny days and starry nights. This wonderful time arrives and departs before we are ready to release our hold on the splendors of the season. But like trapping a firefly and the inevitable letting go, we cannot hold summer firmly in our grasp.

Mused Solstice 2012 presents enchanting works, punctuated with stunning visuals, in which our contributors weave their summer magic. Inspirational poems become literary home movies of summers past. Connecting to nature, delighting in our uniqueness, and living in the moment are the wonders of summer captured in verse.

Brilliant fiction reminds us that, as with the mild that comes with the harsh, we would not appreciate summer without a little chill. Introspective non-fiction reflections implore us to postpone our individual equinoxes, to hold onto our personal summers, and keep them in our hearts. The storms in our lives come at us fast and furious, but they too pass and the summer sun shines again.

We warmly invite you to relax in your favorite deck chair and indulge in a diversion for the senses, heart, and mind. Watermelons optional.

Tammy Elizabeth Southin
MUSED Non-Fiction Editor