September 2, 2013

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".



27 comments:

  1. You missed MY two favs....Baby In The Air & Running Bases. For the record, that oscillating fan NEVER reached my side of the room ;)

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    1. Ahhhh, yes I DID forget those :). So I guess you did notice I always woke up and turned the fan just on me :)

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  2. You perfectly captured summers of long ago. My daughter still wears band-aids and brusies so I guess some things never change. I love this image! So free and whimsical.

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  3. Love your blog, this post, and I was one of those kids too.....Summer's go faster the older you get! You have a new fan and will find ways to follow you as soon as I comment. Would love it if you would visit me sometime! Teresa from NanaHood.com

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  4. I remember the fun I had with my sister...I wish I had commited them to memory better...life was so great back then. Now I just hve to live it through my son's eyes.

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  5. My boys experienced lightning bugs for the first time this summer back in the midwest. We don't have them in Arizona - it's one of my favorite memories from this summer!

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  6. Bam, love it! And....are you sure we didn't grow up in the same neighborhood, gosh those were the good ole days weren't' they?!

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    1. I don't know Kim...do you have a really bad Philly accent too? :)

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  7. Waxing sentimental? I feel like I know you so much better now. :) I was sight seeing with family who came to visit this weekend and saw a grove of trees, you know those skinny ones that are overcrowded but all shady underneath, like the ones I used to play in with my cousins on my Grandfather's farm. That's because I was skinny enough to fit between them back then to play Robin Hood (I was Maid Marion of course). It really took me back to remembering things I had long forgotten. Perhaps that's what Labor Day weekend is really all about; a time of reflection. Wishing you a wonderful month full of joy and good surprises.

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  8. That is how you live summer up!! Grass stains? Psh, green tie dye (-;

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  9. Oh, yes, the bike riding, the many variations of tag, catching lightening bugs (what we called fireflies)--the summers were full of those things and we thought they would never end. Great post, Kathy!

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  10. Wonderful post and great macro action shot ~ carol, xo

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  11. I think we lived in the same neighborhood...I remember every single one of these things. The only thing I'd add were the hours and hours of roller skating around the neighborhood, my roller skating key on a string around my neck so I could tighten my skates when needed. On those summer days, when the street lights came on, we kids knew it was time to wrap up our day and head home before we got in trouble for staying out after dark. And I used to put a wet washcloth in the freezer to take out at night and put on my forehead while trying to sleep in our un-airconditioned house. Oh, the memories! Thanks, Kathy, for letting me remember some really good ones...I LOVE your photo.

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    1. Oh yes....can't believe I forgot about those skates with the key! Isn't it amazing that we all KNEW when to come home without the benefit of a cell phone? :)

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  12. Gosh .... you've got me all nostalgic now!!!
    Dang ... where have those days gone?

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  13. Going to the nearest lake for a swim ...by bike .Being outside unattended for hours ,climbing trees and fences being chased by cows and angry farmers. Thanks for taking me down the memory lane.
    Great picture!

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  14. We'd get out of school Memorial Day weekend and not go back until after Labor Day - fact: summers (break) were longer - long enough to consider being 'bored' but full enough to avoid the disease. I have no clue where this summer went - absolutely none.

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    1. Same here Nicki. Actually, my daughter goes back to school tomorrow. Their summer break began a bit late this year due to a hurricane and power outages which forced them to have to make up some days this June. So summer was a bit shorter than usual...but not by much.

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  15. Oh grass stains - remember those..! :-)

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  16. Those are very nice summer memories.

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  17. That was such a sweet read. Made me think of many summers I had growing up. My kids love to run through the sprinkler now, too. Today, we woke up to 50 degree, dreary, rainy weather, and I think we are all mourning summer and wondering if it may return in time for one last hoorah before they start school on Wednesday.

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  18. Love these memories Kathy, and they all sound so familiar to me! Hope you had a lovely holiday weekend!

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  19. We 4 girls slept on a concrete floor in sleeping bags in the unfinished basement with a box fan blowing on us -- no air conditioning. How the heck did we manage?

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  20. The "Sun Dance" shot is amazing. Great collection of summer memories. Sun-In fiasco LOL

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  21. How refreshing to remember those summers...when I would always be at the Garro's house in back at 4:00 p.m. so I could watch "Where the Action Is" or later...Dark Shadows. Forbidden in my home.

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