Goodbye Summer...

The week that was...

"Time always seems so long to the child who is waiting -

for Christmas,

for next summer,

for becoming a grownup.

Long also when he surrenders his whole soul to each moment of a happy day."

- Dag Hammarskjold

"Sun Dance"

August 26 - September 2, 2013

Project 52 (35/52)

When I was a kid, summer seemed endless and full of possibilities.  Not sure when that perspective morphed.  Last week was the last one in August.  I look at summer, and in the blink of an eye it's gone.  Swoosh.  I'd give it a speeding ticket if I could catch it.  Instead of full of possibilities, I look back and wonder if I accomplished anything.  And I include "relaxing" in that lack of achievements.  It seems this summer was no different than any other season of the year, except hotter.  As a kid, I remember summertime was easy to surrender your soul to each moment of a happy day, full of possibilities.  You know, when the words "I'm bored" were never in my daily vocabulary.  When we use to play outside, and not online...

1.  Running thru sprinklers and marvelling at the rainbows the water's mist would create when it danced with the summer sun.

2.  The requisite bee sting on the foot while running thru those sprinklers barefoot.

3.  The aroma of baby oil when slathered to make me darker...and the smell of Lemony "Sun-In" to make my hair lighter (yet always managed to turn orange-y).  The multitude of dark sunspots now dotting my skin attests to the fact that we only thought soaking up the sun, sans protection, was nothing but a smart thing to do.

4.  Catching fireflies in Miracle Whip jars for our own personal lanterns.  And promptly forgetting about our lanterns as they sat out in the hot summer sun the next day.  RIP.

5.  Grabbing our Schwinn bikes out of the garage in the morning, and disappearing til dinnertime.  Somehow always managing to find something to commandeer our full attention.  The summer uniform was band aids and bruises.  My name was "Banana Legs".

6.  Knowing a grass stain meant I was in trouble.  Then sliding down the hill to get more.

7.  The jingle of the Good Humor truck approaching down Greyhorse Road.  The mad dash of begging mom to part with spare change so I could get my "Chocolate Eclair" from the Good Humor man.  I think my fascination with accessories began with the Good Humor man all dressed in white...and that way awesome metal change maker he wore around his waist.

8.  Sleeping in.  And by "in" I mean maaaaaaaybe 9:00 a.m.   

9.  Air conditioning?  We had baby powder that we sprinkled on our sheets when it was particularly hot and humid, so the sheets would stop sticking to us.  The fight with my sister would then commence on how we were going to regulate the spin of the oscillating fan so it would hit BOTH of us...fairly (it never did).  

10.  Playing hide and seek, kickball, Red Rover, and  tag in the backyard until waaaay after dark.   Tag was it's own art form with many versions:  regular tag, freeze tag, TV tag,  chain tag.  "No Tag Backs!"

Surrendering your whole soul to each moment of a happy day.   No wonder summers seemed to last forever as a kid.  I could learn from my younger self, aside from the whole baby oil and Sun-In fiasco.  After all, I STILL have "Banana Legs".

  

P.S.  Please take a look at where I'm linking up today..."The Party's On".

Please join me on Sundays for Song-ography.

This week's song title is Queen's "I Want to Break Free".