Labor Day weekend has traditionally been thought of as the end of summer. It has always been bittersweet to me.....I look forward to fall, which is truly my favorite season. Yet, I feel sad when summer is drawing to a close. When the children were still at home, I hated to see summer end and school resume. It meant early bedtimes, homework and PTA meetings. The end of lazy long summer days spent on the lake, drifting in a boat, while the kids swam or sailed nearby. I use to think of our house at the Lake as summer camp. I tried to re-enact every ritual of summer that I could think of....coolers of pop, fishing, sailing, swimming and water skiing.
When school dismissed in the spring, we threw out the school clothes and swimming suits became the uniform of the day! Each of them had five swimming suits, enough for a clean one each day. (and still gave MOM as chance to be a bit lazy about laundry!) They would pull on their swim trunks and a T shirt and that was the wardrobe of the day! Even if we were going to Bible School! When you go to Lake Lotawana United Methodist Church, it is just expected that you will show up dressed for the Lake!!!
No kidding!! In the summer, the worship service time was switched to 8:30AM (instead of 10:00AM), so all the fisherman and sailors could get to church and still be out on the Lake by noon!!! What other church does that???
And the infamous Missouri Yacht Club, where the Ski Club practiced twice weekly for the community ski show, presented every July. Lots of fun and hard work for the kids and adults of the community.
Red Cross swimming lessons were also a part of the summer activites, led by adults and the older kids, as they progressed through the skills and levels of the Red Cross Swimming Program. When the kids were very young, they were taught in the inground pool, donated for use by one of the luckier home owners. (can you imagine a pool and a Lake! WOW!!) As the swimmers skills advanced, the swimming lessons moved into the Lake and were taught off a fish infested dock!!! My young sons aways said the fish were nibbling away as they hung from the dock, listening to their instructors!!! OOH, gives me the creeps!!!
"See you in September! Bye-bye, so long, farewell......" click on the grooveshark link to hear it!
No comments:
Post a Comment